


The Scent of Home

by YingHuaCake



Category: A3! (Anime), A3! (Video Game)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, I've been reading too much Isekai, Not Beta Read, Retelling, Self-Indulgent, Spoilers, with some divergence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-02
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:08:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 31,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27842743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YingHuaCake/pseuds/YingHuaCake
Summary: Takahashi Ran found herself taking the place of Tachibana Izumi. Though it was a rather peculiar situation, she had adapted fairly quickly and went on to make some preparations before the main story of A3! began. She just wanted to take care of the characters (mainly save the boys from suffering curry hell) and so she made sure she was staying as close to the plot as possible.At first, everything was fine. Even if she was exhausted because she had to manage the troupes and the side business she started in order to have more money for the actor's necessities, she was satisfied with being with everyone.Yet...A feeling of alienation started to take over her body.She doesn't belong here.  This isn't her place, if they knew the truth, would they still accept her?  She kept her insecurities hidden away, and when she thought no one was watching, she sought out comfort."Director, are you okay?""Director, why are you doing this to yourself?""Director, let us help you."*A reminder that this story is definitely self indulgent lol. Though an OC will be used, the actors know her as "Tachibana Izumi."  The rating of the story might change as the story goes on.*
Relationships: Everyone/Original Female Character(s), Original Female Character & Everyone, Tachibana Izumi (A3!) & Everyone, Tachibana Izumi (A3!)/Everyone
Comments: 12
Kudos: 52





	1. Episode One- Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Once again, if you don't like these types of self-indulgent OC insert stories, please don't read lol. For everyone else, please enjoy this mess. 
> 
> The story is mostly canon compliant, and in the OC's POV.

_“ How did I get in this situation again?”_ Ran thought to herself as she woke up in someone’s arms. 

****

Takahashi Ran’s older sister was the top actress for their home town’s theatre group. In order to help her sister’s dream come true, Ran took over the family’s soap business in her stead while also helping her older sister’s theatre group. 

Ran simply loved watching her sister on stage, showing off her countless hours of practice and training. She loved watching theatre. 

So when one of her sister’s actress friends showed her a certain game, she was immediately attached. There was nothing more fulfilling than helping actors improve and stand on stage confidently. 

_“If I could take care of them in reality, I would be so happy.”_

When Takahashi Ran woke up as Tachibana Izumi, she was rightfully confused.

****

Yet, the pain she felt from pinching herself as she stood in front of MANKAI Theatre was all too real. She was really here.

_“Unbelievable.”_

“Oi, do you have business with this theatre?” Someone called out to her, pulling her out of her daze. Ran turned her head and she was greeted with the sight of Sakyo . 

“...,” Ran stared at Sakyo for a moment, which earned her a confused look from the man. 

_“It’s Sakyo-san! I thought he was really handsome in the game, but seeing him in person is another level!”_

“Ah, no, I’m sorry,” Ran apologized autonomously. Her mind was somewhere else. 

“...If you have no business here, then hurry up and leave. If you don’t, you’ll be in danger,” Sakyo warned. 

A few moments and a shrill later, an excavator came rumbling down the road.

“How’s that! It’s an excavator! It’s strong and scary~!” Sakoda shouted from the vehicle.

“Eeek! Stop!” Matsukawa shrieked once more.

“Aniki! Can I crush it?!” 

“Do it, Sakoda. Just make sure it’s just the sign, since we’re going to revamp the building into a burlesque theatre.” 

“Aye aye, sir!” 

“Hey, please don’t go deciding things on your own!” 

When Ran finally managed to snap out of her daze, Sakoda was a second away from tearing down the theatre’s sign, and Ran grabbed Sakyo’s arm without much thought. 

“There’s people around, it’s dangerous!” Ran panicked. 

_“Shit, I shouldn’t have grabbed him!”_

“That’s why I warned you that it would be dangerous,” Sakyo scoffed as he removed his arm from Ran’s grasp. 

“Please, Furuichi-san, I’m begging you! Please don’t do this!” Matsukawa begged on his knees. Ran bit her lip, she needed to do something or else.

_“But, the prologue was really hard for me to go through…”_ The secondhand embarrassment was too much. 

“I told you that we’d use force if you didn’t pay back all your debt by the last performance,” Sakyo stated matter of factly. 

“The last performance is about to begin! If we can make some money here, we can at least scrape together enough to pay off interest— .”

“Sakoda, stop.” 

“Aye aye, sir!” Sakoda stopped immediately.

_“Sakoda-san really is like a loyal dog…”_ Ran sweatdropped. 

“Do you have any guests?” Sakyo asked Matsukawa.

“N-no,” Matsukawa looked down at the ground in shame. 

“I— I’ll watch the performance,” Ran spoke up before Sakyo could. “I’ve never seen their plays, but this troupe’s sign looks familiar to me, like I’ve been here in the past.” 

“...is that so,” Sakyo’s gaze softened just a hint. 

****

 _“As expected, this theatre has seen better days. In the game, I don’t think there was cg that showed how much maintenance the theatre actually needed..”_ Ran silently made her way to the seats that were right in the middle, with Sakyo following her. 

“We thank you for attending our performance today,” An announcement rang throughout the theatre. 

“Don’t regret stopping me back there,” Sakyo sighed, and Ran gulped. 

_“I really don’t want to watch this performance either…but if I didn’t stop you, the story won’t go on…”_ Ran resisted the urge to cover her face with her hands. 

The cardboard set that reminded people of a school play rather than a professional performance. The stiff and awkward new troupe member, who also happened to be the only actor within the group, and the tense atmosphere. If Ran didn’t know what was going on, she would’ve been a thousand times less anxious. 

If she was in Sakuya’s position, she would’ve definitely fainted or hurled on stage due to her nerves. 

It was truly an earnest performance, just as she remembered, though it was just as painful to watch. 

The awkward tone and the constant stuttering, it reminded Ran of the first time her sister had recited her lines in front of her. 

“What an awful script,” Ran couldn’t deny Sakyo’s comment. “It’s time to crush this place.”

Ran bit her lip. She didn’t have the same amount of confidence that Izumi had in the game, her heart felt like it would stop beating if she were to confront Sakyo. 

_“I have to do it. I have to do it.”_

“Please, give them another chance,” Ran looked at Sakyo, making sure to make eye contact with him. “If the actor works hard enough— .” 

“Nothing in this world can just be solved through hard work. There is no way that this troupe can survive on Veludo Way, and you know that. This is the end of the conversation, I’m crushing this troupe.” 

“Eh? Is this troupe going to disappear?” The earnest boy looked devastated as he heard Sakyo’s words. 

_“Ahhhh, Sakuya-kun, you’re breaking my heart…”_

It was hard for Ran to look at Sakuya. The poor boy had just discovered his dream and taken the first step. 

“I know my acting still sucks, but I love the stage, so please, don’t destroy this place!” Sakuya pleaded desperately, though it was a million times more endearing than when Matsukawa did it. 

“I refuse,” Sakyo glared. 

“Please— !” 

“I’ve already decided to crush this troupe.” 

“I won’t let you!” Matsukawa confronted Sakyo once more. “I have to protect this troupe no matter what!” 

“Matsukawa, I gave you so many chances already. You’re the one who threw those aside, there’s no room for negotiation at this point.” 

“So you’re Matsukawa Isuke-san?” Ran finally took this chance to speak up. 

“Yes… Is there a problem?” Matsukawa looked over towards the woman in confusion. 

“I came here to meet the person who had written this letter to my father,” Ran held up a letter, and Matsukawa’s eyes grew wide. 

“You’re Tachibana Yukio-san’s daughter?!” 

“Yes, I’m Taka— Tachibana Izumi. My father has been missing and out of contact for eight years, so I came in his stead.” 

“He suddenly disappeared one day and he never came back… I thought if I contacted his home then..” 

“So you tried to lean on him again. It looks like you ran out of luck, it’s all over now.”

_“Despite his words, he’s willing to talk to us rather than just tearing down the sign… Though I knew this, Sakyo-san really loves this theatre._ ” 

“There must be another solution,” Ran gulped. 

“T-that’s right! Even if Yukio-san isn’t here, someone else might help us out!” Matsukawa was quick to agree with Ran. 

“You say that so easily because you don’t understand the situation about this troupe,” Sakyo continued to hold his ground. “This theatre— as impertinent as it sounds— is owned by and reserved for this troupe exclusively. This isn’t something every troupe does— most of them borrow small theatres for plays and put on their performances there. Because they own their own theatre and a dormitory, it costs a large sum of money just to maintain this troupe. When this troupe was at its peak eight years ago, it had four theatre units named after the four seasons that put on a performance every month in rotation. The troupe can’t sustain itself unless it has four units and continuously puts on performances every month.

“But with only one troupe member aside from this useless manager, there’s no way to sustain the troupe.” 

“Ah… I see.” 

Sakyo gave Matsukawa a dirty look, “Don’t ‘I see,’ me. You’re supposed to know this more than anyone else, since you’re the manager.” 

“You really know a lot about this troupe,” Ran couldn’t help but be amazed. It was a scene she’s seen before, and yet, his love and dedication for the troupe is really something else. 

“Of course, I always research the conditions surrounding my debtor.” 

“Then, as long as I manage to gather enough troupe members to form four units, it’ll be fine, right?” 

“Well, yeah..” 

“Then, I’ll bring in new members. My father’s disappearance caused the troupe some trouble, so I’ll take responsibility over this troupe.” 

Ran didn’t know where this sudden confidence came from, but all she wanted was to see that large and happy family of actors. 

_“It can’t end here_.” 

“Really?!” Matsukawa looked at her as if she was some godsend.

“How many members are you going to bring in, and when will they be here? Don’t tell me they’re all going to amateurs like that one over there,” Sakyo made eye contact with Sakuya. 

“I can bring over two members. It’ll be fine,” Ran pulled her lips up into a smile, though it was rather stiff. “I have a few connections.” 

“Yay! Now the troupe will be saved!” 

_“It’s way too early to celebrate, Matsukawa-san.”_

“...By sunset.” Sakyo muttered.

“Eh?”

“I’ll wait till sunset today. Bring me those new troupe members by then.”

“You’re going to wait?” 

“I won’t accept amateurs who are just here to make up the numbers.” 

“No worries! Now that Yukio-san’s daughter is here, we have the strength of a hundred people!” 

_“Izumi was a terrible actor, so Matsukawa was lucky that she was a theatre nut and made a good director.”_

“If you can’t, the sign will come down immediately.”

“I understand,” Ran nodded her head. “Come on, let’s go.”

_“It looks like I managed to pass the first stage…”_


	2. Episode One- Chapter Two

“Thank god, thank Yukio-sama, thank—” 

“Before you keep getting your hopes up, I’m going to tell you that what I just said was a bluff. We need to find new troupe members,” Ran refused to listen to Matsukawa’s praise. 

“Eeeh?!” 

“It was all a lie?!” Sakuya’s earnest eyes stabbed a knife of guilt into Ran’s heart. 

“It was an act to get out of the situation. It managed us to get us some time to actually find new troupe members like our lives depend on it.” 

“That’s impossible! We don’t possibly have enough time for that!!” 

“Well, we will have to give it a try.” 

“It’s impossible! All of our old members are gone, and in the end, we only have one new member! I’m not popular at all, and the troupe’s reputation is horrible! No one will want to join our troupe now…,” Matsukawa started to mope around. 

“Um!” Sakuya caught Ran’s attention. “I don’t know what I can do, but please let me help! I don’t want to lose the troupe I managed to join, and it’s better than doing nothing!” 

_ “Sakuya-kun is so cute!! I can’t handle it!”  _

“What is your name? I don’t think I know it,” Ran asked. It would be bad if she started calling him by his name even though he didn’t tell her. 

“Sakuma Sakuya! Saku, like flowers blooming!” 

“Let’s take care of each other, Sakuya-kun.” 

“Yes! It’s a pleasure to meet you!” Sakuya beamed. His smile was blinding, as always. 

“Please pull yourself together, manager. Our newest troupe member is trying his best,” Ran sighed. 

“Uu...fine...I know we’re going to fail, but let’s give it a shot anyways..,” Matsukawa continued to mope. Ran decided to ignore the manager, seeing that his attitude wasn’t going to do anything for their problem. 

“How should we look for troupe members?” 

_ “I’ve never been on stage before myself...but I’ve rehearsed with my sister at home quite a few times since she insisted that it was better than doing it by herself…”  _

“Randomly calling out to people is rather ineffective, so why don’t we perform a street act? If we use a theme that will convey the troupe’s appeal, then those who are interested will gather.” 

“I see! That sounds good! I’ve never performed a street act, but it’s essentially an etude, right?” 

“It’s something like that. So, Manager, are there any merits to joining this troupe?” 

“Well, we have forms of troupe members and I provide two delicious meals a day!” 

_ “The delicious meal part is a lie, but we will have to go with this.” _

“New troupe members won’t be able to make much money, so saving on living costs is a significant benefit.” 

“It might be a benefit but…”

_ “Ah, poor Sakuya-kun...He’s already suffered from Matsukawa-san’s poisonous meals.” _

“Plus, we have our own theatre, so we’re never short on practice space!” 

Ran nodded her head, “Then, why don’t we perform a street act that presents all of those advantages? To keep everything simple, Sakuya-kun, we’ll have you act as an aspiring new troupe member who came to audition while I’ll be the director. The manager can act as the manager. Let’s have this take place in the middle of the audition.” 

“As expected of Yukio-san’s daughter! You’re used to this!” 

“I have some experience in theatre.”

_ “Izumi was a pretty bad actor, so if I mess up, it should be fine. As long as I catch their attention, it should be fine.”  _

“Experience makes all the difference!” Matsukawa’s mood seemed to improve a bit. 

“You’re so reliable!” 

_ “The pressure is real..” _

As Ran watched Matsukawa act, it became obvious that he was the one who wrote the script of the performance she watched earlier. Ran took a deep breath as it neared her time to speak. 

_ “Remember to speak loudly and enunciate clearly. With confidence.”  _

“Then, I’ll announce the topic for the entrance exam.” 

Ran zoned out the crowd by concentrating on Sakuya and Matsukawa. She didn’t feel as nervous by doing this. The acting was a bit rough, but it felt like it was going alright.

“I used to be part of a troupe, but no matter how much I practiced, I was a daikon actor. It’s amazing to be able to see you perform so earnestly. I’m confident that you’ll be able to grow and bloom magnificently, and I would love to support you as you hone your talent,” Ran ended the street act with a promising statement. “Let’s do our best.”

_ “Masumi-kun should be in the crowd. I hope I caught his attention.”  _

****

Ran was too scared to look at if there was anyone watching, but there was no other way to see if there was the person she was looking for. 

While Sakuya was trying his best to catch his breath, Matsukawa asked, “Director, what should we do for our next topic…” 

“W-well,” Before she could properly respond, Ran felt as though someone was watching her. 

_ “...!”  _ She immediately turned her head, and relief washed over her when she saw that it was Masumi.  _ “Just who I wanted! Masumi-kun, he really has pretty facial features..!”  _

Ran smiled gently at Masumi, “Are you interested in theatre, perhaps?” 

Masumi continued to stare at her silently. 

“You’ve been watching us for a while, right?” Ran decided to approach Masumi. 

“Um..uh,” Masumi’s eyes started to swim around. 

“Huh?” Sakuya looked at Masumi and his eyes glistened with recognition. “Masumi-kun? You’re Usui Masumi-kun, right?” 

“Do you know him, Sakuya-kun?” Ran asked.

“We’ve never talked before, but he’s an underclassman from school!” 

“Who are you?” Masumi essentially interrogated. 

“Ah…,” Sakuya laughed awkwardly. “Of course you wouldn’t recognize me..” 

“Masumi-kun, would you like to join the troupe if you’re interested in theatre?” 

“Are you part of that troupe?” 

“Ah, yes… I’m...I’m the director of the troupe,” Ran declared, albeit rather weakly. Sakuya and Matsukawa looked over the moon at her words, but she didn’t say anything, waiting for Masumi to respond. 

“I’ll join then, since you’re part of the troupe.” 

Ran sighed in relief. 

“Yay!! We got one!” Matsukawa cheered gleefully. 

“Really? Masumi-kun, you’re really going to join?!” 

“I don’t care about you.” 

“Even so, I’m happy!” 

Ran chuckled, “I’m sorry to make such demands immediately, but could you join the street act?” 

“What should I do?” 

Ran quickly explained everything to Masumi.

_ “He’s really a genius, and adorable!”  _

Ran carefully watched the sun, waiting for it to start to set. 

****

_ “Tsuzuru-kun should be around the area now. I think I was supposed to meet him earlier, but I wasn’t paying attention. Well, it doesn’t matter since Izumi recruits him around this time.” _

Ran scanned the area as she walked, trying to find the certain brunette.

“Phew...It’s hard to find a troupe that suits your needs, huh..” 

Ran perked up at Tsuzuru’s voice. There was no way she’d mistaken it for anyone else’s.

“Are you interested in joining a troupe?” Ran approached the brunette. 

“Eh?” 

“You said you were looking for a troupe, right?” 

“Yes…I was looking for a troupe that provides dorming..” 

“Then, please consider MANKAI Company, we provide dorms and two meals a day,” Ran offered to the best of her abilities. It wasn’t as enthusiastic as Izumi’s, but since it was what Tsuzuru needed, it was fine. 

“Yes, what do you think?” 

“Who is this guy?” Masumi suddenly spoke up beside Ran. 

“A new troupe member candidate,” Ran explained calmly, despite being a bit startled by Masumi’s presence. 

“Even though you have me?” 

“Haha, we need more people, Masumi-kun.”

“So does anyone work for you? ...Loose morals..” 

“Don’t make it sound so scandalous, we’re talking about hiring more actors,” Ran chided, though there wasn’t any bite in her words. “I’m sorry about that, will you consider joining this troupe?” 

“I don’t have any experience, but is that okay?” Tsuzuru admitted. 

“I joined without any experience, so it’s okay! Let’s work hard together!” Sakura reassured. 

“It’s been eight years since I’ve started acting, but I’m pretty much inexperienced as well!” Matsukawa provided his own experience level. 

“Also, I’m more interested in being a scriptwriter than an actor, and I’d like to write a script but..” 

“That position is also open, so it’s not a problem. I would love it for you to join us.” 

“Understood, then, please take care of me! I’m Minagi Tsuzuru.” 

“Thank you, Tsuzuru-kun. It’ll be a pleasure to work with you. Now, let’s hurry back to the theatre— I’ll explain on the way there!” 

****

“Oh? So you didn’t run away,” Sakyo stated as he saw the group running towards him. 

“We managed to come back with new members,” Ran rested her hands on her knees and she caught her breath. 

Tsuzuru helped Matsukawa catch his breath. 

“You just barely hung on...you’re one lucky bunch,” Sakyo scoffed. 

_ “He’s really unfriendly, but that’s what makes him endearing.” _

“S-so you won’t crush the place?” Matsukawa’s eyes glistened with hope. 

“Don’t even think about acting all relieved, I only said I’d back down for the day if you collected a couple of troupe members. There’s no way the troupe will survive with just two new members.”

“We will perform a Spring Troupe debut performance,” Ran declared. 

“When?”

“Realistically, I’d say six months,” Ran started. “But, I doubt you’ll give us that much time. Though the members here aren’t that experienced, they all have potential. I think we will be able to pull together a performance in a month and a couple weeks.” 

“Director…! You’re asking too much out of these members! Are you trying to torment them?!” Matsukawa sounded appalled by Ran’s statement. 

_ “But they managed to pull it together in the original game..” _

“...Fine then. I’ll be willing to hold off a little on the debt repayment if you can follow these three conditions.”

Ran swallowed and her eyes narrowed slightly. 

_ “Here it comes.” _


	3. Episode One- Chapter Three

“I won't repeat it, so listen well. First, hold a debut performance for the New Spring Troupe by the end of the month, with a full house at the final performance. Second, gather talents and create four units within the year, then have each of them deliver a debut performance, and they all have to be successful. Third, pay off the theatre's debt within one year. If you fail to fulfil even one of these conditions, I'll turn this theatre into a burlesque theatre, and you will have no right to protest.”

“That’s impossible! We can’t fulfil all of that within a year!” Matsukawa protested. 

“Then the signboard comes off right now,” Sakyo started to raise his hand up to signal Sakoda. 

“Please be quiet, Manager! This must be the reason why you haven’t paid off the debt, because you’re too busy complaining!” Something snapped inside of Ran. “Speaking of which, how much is the debt?” 

“Ten million yen.”

“That’s really borderline impossible,” Ran mumbled to herself. _“If it weren’t for the fact that this is a game.”_

“I’ve already given you as many chances as I can. I can’t give you anymore than this, but… if you’re willing to sell your body to pay off the debt, it’s another story.”

“I’ll try to revive the theatre as the director first. This was my father’s treasure, if I can do something for it, I want to try.”

_“And there’s no way I could leave the troupe with Matsukawa-san...even if I didn’t know the outcome..”_

It would be cruel for the boys. 

“If I cannot fulfil those requirements, then I’ll sell my body.”

“...! You can’t do that!” Tsuzuru rejected adamantly.

“What do they mean by selling your body…?” Sakuya looked around for an explanation that no one was willing to give. 

“Keep your hands off of her,” Masumi glared. 

Ran looked at the actors and smiled softly, “Then we will have to repay the debt through our dedication and hard work. I’ll be counting on you guys.”

“Hmph. Show me your best shot, but I’ll be expecting an empty theatre.” 

“Then, I won’t meet your expectations, Sakyo-san.”

Sakyo’s eyes widened a fraction. 

“...Let’s go, Sakoda!”

“Aye aye, sir!”

With that, the yakuza left them alone. Ran let out a sigh of relief. 

_“Wait, did I just call Sakyo-san by his name? I don’t think he actually told me his name…_ ” when the realization set in, it was already too late. 

“Anyways, Manager, can you lead us to the dormitory? I’m sure everyone is tired. We should sit down and rest for a while.” 

****

Matsukawa guided them over to the MANKAI Company’s troupe dormitory, which was much larger than Ran thought it was initially. Though it obviously had to be big, you could never really tell with the CGs.

Matsukawa explained where everything was in the dorm, providing everyone with their rooms. As expected, Ran had to call Sakuya’s family to receive their permission. She left a message for Masumi’s parents, while making sure to deny all of his love, though she didn’t really want to. 

_“I’m a responsible adult._ ”

“Just like I promised in front of Sakyo-san, I will take the position of director for this troupe. I’m sorry that I’ve already pushed a hard task on your shoulders already, but I will be supporting you through all of this, so do not hesitate to rely on me when you need help,” Ran reminded the boys. “Oh, I forgot to introduce myself to all of you, my name is Tachibana Izumi. I look forward to working with everyone.”

“Food—!! I’m hungry, feed me!” A pink parrot came fluttering into the lounge. Matsukawa looked over to the clock. 

“Oh! It’s already this late! I’ll make a feast to celebrate our new director and troupe members!”

“Ah, no, I’ll make it!” Ran quickly interjected. “In fact, I’ll take care of all of the meals from now on.”

“Oh no, I can’t have you do that, Director. You don’t have to worry about it—.”

“Cooking is a destresser for me, please let me do it,” Ran insisted as she walked to the kitchen to start cooking. 

_“Let’s not sacrifice Tsuzuru-kun’s body tonight. He didn’t die from the food poisoning, but I can’t risk it.”_

“I’ll switch with you once in a while then,” Tsuzuru offered. 

“Tsuzuru-kun, you can cook? That’s amazing!” 

“My parents were busy with work, so I used to cook for my brothers. I can make fried rice at the very least.”

“Thank you, Tsuzuru-kun. Now, everyone, you should rest until dinner is ready. It’s been a long day,” Ran checked the fridge and pantry to see what there was to cook. 

_“Ah, I guess I can cook curry for today...”_

****

“The food is ready, everyone!” Ran called out to everyone as she started to plate up their meals. She was grateful that the kitchen had everything she needed for her usual curry recipe. 

“Thanks for the food!” Everyone started eating.

The delight in their expression made Ran instantly relax. It was to their taste— that was good. 

“Which curry roux did you use?” Matsukawa looked up at her in awe. 

“I didn’t. I try to avoid using prepackaged food since it’s not good for your health. I used the handful of spices you had in the kitchen. There’s enough for seconds, so don’t hesitate to eat as much as you want.”

“Is Director not going to eat?” Sakuya gave Ran a curious look. She blinked a few times and realized she hadn’t eaten. 

“Ah, I was just about to get some for myself. I wanted to make sure it was to your taste first,” Ran bluffed. In reality, she forgot about her own hunger. It was a bad habit that she couldn’t get rid of. 

“It was delicious, Director! Thank you for the meal!” Sakuya grinned as he brought his dishes to the kitchen to clean them. 

“I want to eat it everyday,” Masumi said as he looked directly at Ran. 

“Haha, I’m happy to hear that you like it, Masumi-kun.”

“I like anything Director makes.” 

“You know, it’s nice eating with everyone like this,” Sakuya grinned. Ran’s gaze softened lovingly. 

“Yeah, it’s lively,” She agreed. “It’s comforting, in its own way.”

“It reminds me of how the troupe used to be,” Matsukawa reminisced. “Ah! That’s right, I have a video of the original Spring Troupe’s performance. Why don’t we all watch it together?”

_“I never got to see it, so it would be nice to watch it.”_

“That’s a good idea. I’ll make some coffee for everyone then,” Ran returned to the kitchen to start making the drinks. 

“I’ll help!” Sakuya started to grab some cups to wash. 

“Then, I’ll watch you pour the coffee,” Masumi started to watch Ran more intently, as though he wasn’t already looking at her. 

“You’re just going to watch?!” Tsuzuru exclaimed. 

Matsukawa set everything up while Ran and Sakuya finished making everyone’s drinks. They all sat on the couches in the lounge to watch the video on the TV. 

****

 _“It’s amazing..!”_ Ran was excited to see such an amazing performance. _“It’s like everything was meant for the Spring Troupe._ ” 

She couldn’t help but praise the original troupe members, and she only grew more passionate as she saw how the members loved acting. 

_“They’re really just like my sister— or is she just like them?”_

“Incredible…,” Sakuya muttered under his breath. “Everyone is giving them a standing ovation! I never realized that MANKAI Company was such an amazing troupe!”

“The Spring Troupe had the most traditional-style programs, so it was the most popular of the troupes,” Matsukawa informed. 

“Even though Romeo and Juliet is an overused motif, the performance felt new and refreshing,” Tsuzuru noted. 

“Originally, we thought the motif would’ve been better if it was used for a different troupe, but the scriptwriter insisted on using it for the Spring Troupe. He arranged the motif to fit the Spring Troupe’s image, and it became a huge success.”

“I see..”

“I wonder if we can be like them one day,” Sakuya wondered. 

“That’s a high bar.”

“I think you’ll not only become as great as them, but you’ll become even greater,” Ran encouraged. “I can tell that you all have amazing potential.” 

“Let’s do this!” Matsukawa cheered. 

“Yes!” 

“Well, it’s really our own option at this point,” Tsuzuru sighed. He looked towards Ran, “Especially since the other options aren’t ideal at all.”

Ran chuckled. 

“We will start practice tomorrow, make sure to be at the training room at 7 AM,” Ran announced. 

“Seriously? That’s as early as my part time job at the bakery…” 

“Understood!” Sakuya was as enthusiastic as ever. 

“Come wake me up,” Masumi requested, or rather, demanded. 

_“As much as I’d like to, Masumi-kun, I can’t. I have to keep this relationship_ **_professional_ ** _.”_

“I’ll make a hearty breakfast for everyone, so go to sleep early and get ready for tomorrow.”

****

Thankfully, the director’s room— Yukio-san’s room— was clean enough to sleep in, thanks to Matsukawa. The manager had the decency to do some cleaning, it seems. 

_“Though I knew this would happen, I could only bring a backpack with me, so I don’t have anything but basic necessities. Oh, I also need to call Mother to tell her what’s happening, and I’ll probably have to ask her to pack and deliver my things to the dorm…”_ Ran got on her phone and went to call home.

“Izumi? Is there something wrong?” Her mother greeted her. 

“There were some circumstances that happened, and I ended up becoming the director of dad’s troupe…,” Ran still wasn’t used to being called Izumi. “I jumped into things rather suddenly, so I don’t have much on me. I don’t think I have time to go back home and pack my things, so I wanted to ask you if you could deliver my belongings to the dorm.” 

“...I see. Okay, I understand. What do you want me to pack?”

Ran requested a handful of her clothes, along with her soap and candle making supplies. Unable to step away from her past life’s occupation, she ended up opening an online shop that sold various soaps and candles. Thankfully, it managed to become a stable form of income before she was sent off to MANKAI. 

“Will your shop be okay, Izumi? It’ll take a while for your supplies to get there,” her mother asked out of concern.

“I packed all of the orders that I had yesterday, so I should be fine. I closed the shop this morning too. I’ll open it back up as soon as everything is delivered.”

“Alright. I know you’re a responsible adult, but I would like it if you contacted me every few days, at least for the first few months. You don’t have to call me, a message is fine. I just want to make sure my lovely daughter is okay.” 

“Yes, I’ll make sure to send you a message or call you whenever I can, Mother. It’s getting late, you should get some rest.” 

“You too, Izumi. Thank you for notifying me.”

“I should be thanking you, Mother. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

Ran sigh as she pressed the end call button. As much as she wanted to sleep, she needed to make up some lesson plans. 

It ended up being a pretty late night for her. 

****

Ran groaned as her alarm rang, waking her up from her sleep. 

_“Why did I decide to start so early in the day? I’m really bad at waking up,”_ Ran pulled herself out of bed. To make things worse, she woke up even earlier so she could take a shower and make breakfast for everyone. It was the weekend for god's sake. 

The three boys all made their way to the lounge, and were greeted with the scent of breakfast. Ran was standing in the kitchen in front of the stove, flipping some pancakes. 

“Good morning, Director!” Sakuya greeted her with a bright smile, like it wasn’t the crack of Dawn. 

“Mornin’,” Tsuzuru’s greeting was what someone would expect so early in the morning— one with low energy. 

“Sleepy..,” Masumi grumbled as he nearly fell. 

“Woah!” Tsuzuru caught Masumi in the nick of time.

_“Ahhh! They’re so precious…!”_

“Good morning. I’m almost done making breakfast, so get something to drink and wait please,” Ran returned the greeting. “I make pancakes and omelettes filled with root veggies and some meat, so eat whatever you’d like.” 

_“I almost made curry...Izumi’s addiction is really strong… to the point her body subconsciously craves it, I need to be careful.”_ Ran sweatdropped as she flipped the last pancake. There wasn’t any maple syrup or whipped cream, so she made do with some honey and bananas. 

“Wuah, Director is really good at cooking!” Sakuya was amazed by the meal that Ran had prepared. 

“It’s a hobby of sorts, plus it’s not a bad thing to know how to cook. Anyways, eat as much as you’d like. We have a long day ahead of us.”

Ran made sure to leave a portion for whenever Matsukawa woke up, which was around noon, as Sakuya informed. After everyone had their fill, Ran had them rest for a moment as she washed the dishes.

They went over to the training room right after. Ran had the boys start with stretches before moving on to vocal training and etudes. Because of Izumi’s experience as an actress, her body was used to this type of activity. Just like in the game, Ran had to wake up Masumi on multiple occasions, though it was hard to be annoyed when he had such an adorable sleeping face. 

Seeing that everyone was a beginner, Ran had them take a thirty minute break after a few hours of training. Of course, she made sure to give them five or so minute breaks during that time. She stepped out of the training room and bumped into Matsukawa. 

“Ah Director, wonderful timing!” Matsukawa spoke up to Ran.

“Is something the matter?” 

“Masumi-kun’s parents got in touch and approved of him joining the troupe.”

“That’s good,” Ran nodded her head. “Did they directly contact you?”

“No, their secretary called us and left us a message…that’s pretty cold of them, don’t you think?”

“Yes… but it’s good we managed to get permission. We can just make him feel at home here.” 

****

 _“Mother said that it would take a while for my things to arrive, but it’s already here..”_ Ran stared at the boxes that a few movers were carrying in. It was the next day, and rather early in the morning. 

“Where would you like us to bring these boxes?” One of the workers asked. 

“A-ah, I’ll take you there. Thank you for your help,” Ran then guided the workers to her room, where she just had them place the boxes on the floor without stacking them. The boxes that were labeled fragile were likely to be her soap and candle making supplies. 

She made sure to thank the movers as they left. 

“Director?” Sakuya called out to Ran as he walked towards the entranceway. 

“Sakuya-kun, good morning. Has everyone eaten breakfast yet?” 

“Yes, but you weren’t there so I got a little worried.”

“I had my mother deliver some of my stuff since I’ll be living here for a while at the very least. I was just getting the boxes moved to my room so they wouldn’t crowd up the entranceway,” Ran looked at her phone. “It’s pretty late now, let’s head over to the training room, we have quite a bit to do today.” 

_“Today, I need to collect Citron and Itaru-san.”_

Aish, they weren’t gacha. She was going to recruit them, not collect. 

****

After making a mess of themselves during a street act, they managed to catch Citron’s attention. 

“Then, please consider joining MANKAI company! We provide rooming, so you won’t have to worry about finding a place to live, and you’ll be able to study theatre!” 

“Director! Are you out of your mind?” Tsuzuru questioned.

_“I know, I know. This would never be a good idea, but it’s Citron, so it’s fine.”_

“He’s a different character than the three of you, and he makes an impact. He’ll build a world on stage just by standing on stage— it’s a rare talent.”

They managed to bring Citron into the group, much to Ran’s relief. That being said, it was clear that Tsuzuru was questioning her decision. It was valid, but there was no way she could explain why she believed in this foreign stranger. 

She hoped she managed to pass it off as desperation. 

_“Citron’s eyes are really pretty… I love how they’re such a light blue. Now, it’s time to find our gaming otaku…”_

****

Just like in the game, they found Itaru standing in front of the housing billboard. Sakuya, who was still dizzy from Citron spinning him around, bumped right into the salaryman. 

“Ow—.”

_“Itaru-san’s voice is so beautiful!!!!!! AhhhhhHHHH!!”_

“—I’m sorry! I was dizzy— I didn’t mean to bump into you!” Sakuya hastily apologized. 

“I’m sorry, are you alright?” Izumi approached Itaru with an apologetic expression. 

“Y-yes.”

_“He’s super handsome too. I’ve always loved his eye color too...it really fits him.”_

“Sorry, Sakuya’s mistake is my mistake,” Citron looked down and bowed slightly. 

“Please don’t worry about it,” Itaru said politely. 

“My name is Tachibana Izumi, and I’m the General Director of MANKAI Company. Our company is looking for live-in troupe members, so I was wondering if you’d be interested since you were standing in front of the housing billboard. As long as you attend practice every weekday evening and two more times a week, we will provide you with free housing and two meals a day,” Ran introduced herself. 

“Housing and food costs are free...is the room a single?”

“No, the rooms are mostly doubles while the baths and toilets are communal.”

_“The more I look at him, the more handsome he becomes..”_

“Doubles...I have a lot of luggage so I think I need it to be a single..”

“I’m currently living alone in my room, and there’s still one Spring Troupe room available, so why doesn’t he use that one?” Sakuya suggested. 

“Would it be okay if Citron-kun roomed with you then, Sakuya-kun?” 

The two gave their approval.

“Then I’ll be able to provide you with a single room. Would that be okay?” 

“...Please tell me more.”

_“The Spring Troupe is complete!!”_

“Yes, then, I’ll guide you to the dorms.”

****

With that, all five members of the Spring Troupe had been gathered within 3 days. 

_“That being said, this is only the beginning...there’s going to be a lot that needs to be sorted out…”_

Ran had decided to take a similar role to Izumi’s, where she remained a spectator a majority of the time and allowed the troupe members to solve their problems. It was a good way to get them to bond, and by watching them, she’ll be able to decide if she needs to step in or not. She was scared to force the story off course and create irreparable damage. 

Tsuzuru volunteered to create the script for the Spring Troupe play, basing it off of Romeo and Juliet. 

“I’ll give you a week’s worth of time to create a script. It can be polished and edited during the month or so, but we need a complete script first. You don’t have to attend practice.”

“Is...is that really okay?”

“If you give me an incomplete script, then I’ll be mad, Tsuzuru-kun.” 

“That’s scary…”

“The future of the company rests on the script, and therefore, in your hands. You can’t just write a script for your own satisfaction.” 

“Roger—.”

“Just keep in mind, since your group consists of only male actors, either one of the actors will have to play the female role, or the script has to be adjusted to be all male roles. At least for now, it would be much more difficult to give one of you a female role, since we don’t have the money or the experience.”

“Please leave that matter to me.”

“Yeah, I believe in you, Tsuzuru-kun.”

Tsuzuru’s eyes widened for a moment, though Ran didn’t seem to notice. 

“Yes!” 

“Well, now that we have everything decided, let’s stop here for tonight. Sakuya-kun and Masumi-kun have school tomorrow, and I don’t want you two to be late.”

“I want you to wake me up.”

“I’ll be busy making you breakfast. Anyways, I’m counting on you Sakuya-kun.”

“Yes!” 

As the actors shuffled to their rooms, Matsukawa approached Izumi. With a quiet voice, he asked, “Is it really okay to leave the script matter with Minagi-kun? Should I search for the first generation’s script just in case? We can use that for the read through in the meantime..” 

Ran smiled, “No, it’ll be alright. I’m sure he’ll make a wonderful script.”

****

_“I’m tired, but I need to make more soaps and candles or else I’ll run out of stock.”_

Ran checked to see if any orders came in. She had opened the store back up after her supplies came in. There were a dozen or so orders already, and she decided to pack the orders up before she went on to making more stock. 

In the end, she didn’t get a wink of sleep. Thankfully, with the boys going to school and practice being in the evening, she could get some things done in the afternoon. 

She sent everyone off before going to her room to return to making candles and soaps. 

_“I’ll get some sleep as they’re curing.”_

****

Ran noticed Sakuya’s nose twitched as he came up to her during their evening practice. 

_“Oh my, he’s so precious!”_

“Ah, I’m sorry. I did change, but the scent of essential oils must’ve stuck onto my clothes. Is it too strong?” Ran apologized. 

“Ah, no, it’s okay! It just caught me off guard.”

“If you don’t like it, just tell me, alright? It would be bad if it distracted you. Anyways, why don’t we get started?” Ran clapped her hands together to get everyone’s attention. “Starting from today, Itaru-san and Citron-kun will start attending practice from today onwards. Tsuzuru-kun will be absent for the next week so he can focus on scriptwriting.”

_“Itaru-san and Citron-san are so handsome...my eyes are being blessed with all of these beautiful men! If Tsuzuru-kun was here, it would be even better!”_

“Please take care of me,” Citron said as he placed his hand against his chest. 

“I may cause some trouble since I don’t have any experience in acting, but I’ll look forward to working with you guys,” Itaru was still in his charming businessman mode. 

“Are you done preparing for moving, Itaru-san?” Sakuya asked. 

“I brought my necessities with my car, so I just have to wait for the movers to bring in the rest next week.”

“Oh, so you have a car! So cool!” 

“If you ever need a ride, just tell me and I’ll drive you.”

“Then, we will be relying on you for that as well. Thank you, Itaru-san,” Ran thanked him beforehand. 

_“The difference between the business Itaru-san and the shut-in Itaru-san is amazing as always.”_

“Now, let’s start with some warm ups and then do some vocal exercises. After that, we’ll do a few pantomiming activities. I’ll explain what you’ll do when we get to that.”

Ran made sure to make an alarm for 9 o’clock so she remembered when to stop practice. She turned off the alarm as soon as it started ringing, “Okay, let’s stop here. We did quite a bit tonight.”

“I can still go on!” Sakuya insisted, despite looking a bit tired. 

“I’d like to extend the service,” Citron nodded his head in agreement. 

_“Pfft—.”_

“We aren’t a shady business, please don’t say something like that..!” Ran barely resisted the urge to laugh. 

_“The absurdness of Citron-san is even worse in person..”_

“If I can be with you until dawn, I wouldn’t mind.”

_“Of course you can—.”_

“Masumi-kun, that’s indecent.” 

“Hmm, but you two have school tomorrow, so you shouldn’t push yourself too hard. Besides, I also have work.”

_“Itaru-san, you just want to go back into your room to play games and watch anime..”_

“You’re right, so let’s call it a day.” 

“Um, can I do vocal exercises for a little longer?” Sakuya pleaded with puppy eyes.

“ _An angel..”_

“Just for thirty minutes, okay? You need to wake up early for school, so it wouldn’t be good to stay up too late.”

“I’ll accompany you,” Citron smiled. 

“I’ll stay if you’re going to,” Masumi stared at Ran. 

“Then, I’ll head back to my room. Thank you for today,” Itaru went to leave the room. 

“Yes, have a good night, Itaru-san. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Ran stayed behind to supervise the two motivated actors, while Masumi remained so he could stay by her side. He was devoted as always. 

****

When Ran returned to her room, she checked on the progress of the candles and soaps. She looked over to the cardboard box that contained her molds. She could make a few more blocks of soap. 

_“Ah, maybe I should make some based on the troupes.. I have four molds left, so that’ll be perfect. If I order more candle jars, I can make a candle for each of them too.”_

She immediately went to work. 

****

“Have a good day, everyone,” Ran saw the two high schoolers and the salaryman on their way out. “Stay safe.” 

“Yes! Thank you, Director!”

“...I don’t want to go to school.”

“Then, see you later.” 

She waved at them and waited for the door to close before checking the time. 

_“I’ll get some shopping done today after I finish cutting the soap.”_

“Director, are you going out?” Citron caught sight of Ran as she was slipping her shoes on. 

“Ah, yes, I am. We needed some more groceries,” Ran replied as she fixed her jacket. “I’ll be back soon to start getting ready for dinner.” 

“Have a safe trip!” 

“I will, Citron-kun.”

****

_“Tonight, I’ll make some pasta…what should I make? Ah, I can make some Napolitan. That was Sakuya’s favorite, right? I’ll also grab some vegetables to make a salad, and a few more spices. The dorm has the basics, but it would be better to get some more.”_

When she was done shopping, Ran had ended up with a large amount of groceries. 

“I’m glad I brought my backpack,” Ran sighed as she started putting a few of the grocery bags into her backpack. “I ended up buying a lot more than I anticipated, since there were quite a few sales.”

_“It’ll only get worse from now on, so I’ll have to get used to it.”_

She was smiling happily on her way home as she thought about the future. 

“We’re home!” 

Ran heard Sakuya’s voice as she was placing the spaghetti into the pot of boiling water. 

“Ah, welcome home, Sakuya-kun, Masumi-kun. Dinner will be ready in twenty minutes,” Ran greeted the two high schoolers as they walked into the lounge and kitchen space. 

_“Itaru-san should be arriving soon as well.”_

“I’m home.”

_“Ah, speak of the devil.”_

“Welcome home, Itaru-san.”

“Dinner will be ready in twenty minutes.”

“What’s for dinner?” Sakuya asked. 

“I decided to make Napolitan and a salad.”

_“.....!!!”_ The way Sakuya’s eyes glistened with joy and anticipation struck Ran’s heart. _“He’s so cute!!!”_

“Ahem,” she cleared her throat and looked away. “I bought ingredients to make Vietnamese spring rolls for tomorrow, are there any vegetables that you guys don’t like?”

“Uhh...I can’t handle celery,” Sakuya muttered shyly.

“I’m okay with anything you make,” Masumi said what he always did. 

“Ah, I’m okay with anything,” Itaru responded with his signature smile. 

“Okay, I’ll keep that in mind.” 

_“Now that I think about it, did Tsuzuru go out at all? I'll bring him his dinner, since he’s probably shut in his room.”_

****

The next few days passed by in a similar manner, with Ran taking care of some matters with the company and her business while everyone had gone out. Everyone was improving during practice, and she made breakfast and dinner for everyone. 

“Um, Director, are you okay? You look tired,” Sakuya was concerned as he noticed the dark circles under Ran’s eyes. Right now, they were waiting for Tsuzuru to come in with the script. 

“Just lack of sleep since I’m a little busy. Don’t worry, I’m not as tired as I look,” Ran reassured. Though there wasn’t a need for her to, she hid the fact that she had spent her nights making soap and candles. 

“If you say so, Director… I haven’t seen Tsuzuru-kun at all. I hope he’s alright.”

“Masumi-kun, do you know how Tsuzuru-kun’s doing?” Ran turned her attention to Tsuzuru’s roommate. She always ended up putting a tray of food for Tsuzuru by his bedroom door and sending him a message to remind him to eat it. She was worried that seeing him would break his concentration. 

“I don’t know.”

“I’m pretty sure he’s been stuck in his room for a while... Do you two ever talk to each other?”

“No. I don’t even notice him. He’s too engrossed in his PC.”

“He’s probably working nonstop then..”

“I tried talking to Tsuzuru, but he didn’t respond,” Citron commented. 

“It seems like he’s been taking days off of college too. It’ll probably be a good idea to check on him,” Itaru suggested. 

“You’re right. I’ll go to his room.”

“What if he hasn’t finished the script yet?” 

“I’m sure he’s done with it, since he has that type of personality. Well, if he didn’t, then we will have to use a different script. If we wait any longer, it’ll affect our performance. The more time we spend with the script, the better you’ll get.”

_“Well, I know he’s done with the script.”_

“This theatre company isn’t meant to be a company meant for amateurs, so it can’t be helped,” Itaru reminded. 

“I see,” Sakuya appeared a little dejected. 

“For now, why don’t we go and check up on him? Itaru-san, if you’re still feeling unwell, you don’t have to come to practice. Your health is important, so please get some rest.”

“...Thank you, Director-san. Then, I’ll return to my room.” 

_“It’s not like I can tell him that I know that was an excuse so he could game.”_

“Before we go, I’ll fix up something for him to eat. He might be hungry.” 

Using the fried chicken that she had made for dinner, Ran made some sandwiches and a glass of warm lemon-honey water. Sakuya offered to carry the tray, so Ran let him do so. 

_“He’s so caring...I really adore him..!”_

****

When everyone arrived at Masumi and Tsuzuru’s room, they waited for Ran to call out to the college student. Ran knocked on the door softly, “Tsuzuru-kun? Are you in there?” 

They waited for a few seconds, only to be greeted with silence.

“He’s not replying.”

“Maybe he’s sleeping.”

“I think he’s dead.”

“?!” Citron and Sakuya shot a concerned look towards Masumi. 

_“...Well, he’s definitely on the brink of death.”_

“Tsuzuru-kun— I’m coming in!” Ran pulled out the master key from her jean pocket and unlocked the door to get in. 

As expected, they found Tsuzuru collapsed onto the floor, completely knocked out. If it weren’t for the swallow movement of his chest from breathing, Ran would’ve been completely convinced that he was dead. 

“He collapsed!! Are you okay, Tsuzuru-kun?!” Sakuya set the tray of food onto the floor to check on Tsuzuru. 

“Oh, Tsuzuru, how did you die?”

_“That sounds way more morbid than it needs to be.”_

“We should call an ambulance, Director—.”

Ran went over to Tsuzuru’s body and placed a finger under his nose. 

“Don’t worry, he’s just asleep,” Ran looked up towards Tsuzuru’s PC. “Ah, he wrote something on his PC. Masumi, could you check what it says?”

Masumi went over to the computer and said, “‘I wrote it.’” 

“Uhh, ‘I wrote it?’” Sakuya’s eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. 

“He must’ve finished the script then. Why don’t get the script printed out?”

“Oh, I’ll go do it!” Sakuya volunteered as Masumi stepped away from the computer. 

“Tsuzuru, Tsuzuru, wake up,” Citron went to shake Tsuzuru awake, but Ran stopped him. 

“Let him sleep some more, I’m sure he exhausted himself.”

“Oh, you’re right. There are big bears under his eyes.”

“Haha, it’s ‘bags,’ not ‘bears,’ Citron-kun,” Ran chuckled. “Thank you for your hard work, Tsuzuru-kun.”

She patted Tsuzuru’s head in a gentle manner. 

_“It’d be pretty hard to move him to his bed, and he doesn’t have a couch in his room… but we can at least get him in a more comfortable position..”_


	4. Episode One- Chapter Four

Tsuzuru came running into the practice room when it was late in the morning. He had come in just as Ran finished reading the script for Romeo and Julius. 

“The script—! How’s the script, Director?!” Tsuzuru gasped for air. 

“Good morning, Tsuzuru-kun, you could’ve slept more,” Ran flipped the script back to the cover page. “The script is wonderful, just what I was hoping for. Let’s use this for next month’s performance.”

“I did it! What a relief..” 

Relief flooded into Tsuzuru’s body, causing him to slump his shoulders. 

“Thank you for your hard work. The way you resolved the issue about the female roles is amazing.” 

“Turning Juliet into a man is a really good idea!” Sakuya agreed. 

“To change a play that’s seen as a tragic love story into one that’s about everlasting friendship, I’m sure this will be a refreshing take for the audience.”

“Though it’s not exactly like Romeo and Juliet, I was one forced to separate from a friend because of my family environment. I decided to use that as a reference.”

“In a way, you were basing it off of real experience.”

“My family is poor, and my friend came from a wealthy family, so his parents told him to stop playing with me. We got along really well, but because of that, we’ve become estranged.”

“I feel you. Adult circumspices are cruel,” Citron lamented. 

“It’s ‘adult circumstances,’ don’t make it sound so dubious.”

“I really like how you decided to change the ending of the story to a happy one that involves them going on a journey together,” Sakuya praised as he flipped through his script. 

“I thought it would be a more fitting image for the Spring Troupe, since the first generation of the Spring Troupe had a noble and cheerful image. I was thinking it would be better to go with that sort of image as well.”

“That’s true. I don’t think there’s a better script than this one for the New Spring Troupe’s debut performance,” Ran declared. “Since you’re the scriptwriter, I assume that you have an idea of who you want to play which role.” 

“Yeah. I want Sakuya to play the protagonist Romeo.” 

“Eh?! Me?!” Sakuya was surprised to hear Tsuzuru’s announcement. 

“Well, you were the first member to join the company, and you also give off Spring Troupe vibes.” 

“That’s true, Sakuya-kun has the image of a noble, bright, energetic and straightforward person,” Ran agreed. 

“I know, right?” 

“No, please. As long as I can stand on the stage, I’m good with playing the supporting role or even being in the background,” Sakuya insisted rather feverishly. 

“There’s no such thing as a background character. Not to mention, I believe that Sakuya-kun fits the role of Romeo.”

“But is it really okay for me to be the protagonist?” 

“No protein!” Citron joined the conversation. 

“It’s ‘problem,’” Tsuzuru sweatdropped. “It looks like you’re not just weak at Japanese.” 

“I don’t care,” Masumi mumbled. 

“Then, it’s decided,” Izumi announced. “I’m also thinking of making the protagonist the leader of Spring Troupe. Sakuya-kun, do you think you can do it?” 

“Leader..? I’m not sure if I can do it..” 

“I’m sure you’ll become an excellent leader.” 

“Then...I’ll do my best!” 

“That’s the spirit. Tsuzuru-kun, who did you want to play the other roles?” 

“Julius is Masumi. I’ll play Romeo’s friend, Mercutio, and Itaru-san will play the role of Tybalt, Julius’ big brother. Father Lawrence is Citron-san.” 

“I see, it suits everyone’s age one way or another,” Ran decided to skim through the script once more. 

“Oh, but the Father only has a few lines,” Citron pointed out.

“It’s intentional,” Tsuzuru stated. 

“How could you do this to someone with overflowing talent like me?” 

Citron sounded appalled. 

“You can’t even speak proper Japanese!” 

“The Father might have fewer lines, but he leaves a strong impact during that short time. I’d say it’s the most important role right next to Julius and Romeo’s roles. It’s perfect for Citron-kun. It looks like you wrote the roles with the actors’ images, which is perfect. This is exactly— no— it exceeded my expectations, Tsuzuru-kun! Well done, now we have to do our best in practice so we can execute the play as well as this script deserves.”

_ “I hope I’m saying this right, I don’t really remember what Izumi said about the script for Romeo and Juluis, since I read that part a long time ago...and I can barely recall the scene in the anime. This script is really good though.”  _

“Yes!” Sakuya exclaimed. 

“It looks like practice will be tough.”

“I’m looking forward to it.” 

“Your tension is high somehow,” Masumi noted. 

“I’m looking forward to our practice sessions. I can’t wait to see how everyone will grow as actors,” Ran looked at her phone to check the time. “Well, we’ll start the read-through tomorrow. Make sure to read through it at least once before then.” 

****

_ “Everyone looked more motivated because of the finished script. Now, I need to give Itaru-san his script.”  _ Ran went straight to the kitchen to get something to drink. She made a cup of tea for herself.  _ “Because the anime made it really dramatic, I remember this scene well… Itaru-san is really scary if you interrupt him while he’s gaming..Ow—  _ ” 

She hissed when the hot liquid burned her tongue. 

_ “I really need to give him his script…” _

She took a deep breath to collect herself.

_ “Please don’t kill me..” _

Ran stood in front of Itaru’s door, holding Itaru’s copy of the script in her hand. She ended up stalling by deciding to highlight Tybalt’s lines for Itaru, but she eventually gave in and accepted her fate. In hopes to quell his anger just a bit, she also brought over some food, which consisted of some junk food and some food she made that were easy to eat. There was also a bottle of soda and some tea. 

Ran pressed her ear against the door. She could hear clattering noises— he was definitely in the middle of a game. 

_ “Do I really want to enter right now…?” _

The answer was no, not at all. 

_ “I’ll just wait for him to finish the game...It shouldn’t take too long..”  _

Eventually, she heard the creaking noise of someone leaning back against the chair. She took a deep breath and willed herself to knock on the door, “Itaru-san? Are you there? It’s me, Taka— Tachibana. I came to give you your script..” 

She continuously prayed for mercy. She hoped Itaru heard her and would open the door to take the script, but those hopes were dashed when there was no response. She really had no choice but to enter. 

“I’m coming in...” 

“ — Don’t come in!” Itaru shouted aggressively, causing Ran to jump. 

“I-Itaru-san…” 

He practically jumped out of his seat and ran up to the woman, slamming his hand right next to her against the wall. 

“Shit, don’t come in as you please. Can’t you see that I’m busy?” Itaru growled, his eyes glowing in a rather demonic manner due to the lighting. 

_ “Scary—! But to see his face this upclose is a treat..! Wait, that’s not the problem here! He’s going to kill me if I don’t leave soon!”  _

“I’m sorry for bothering you, Itaru-san—! I just came to give you your script, I highlighted all of your lines for your role! You skipped dinner, so I got you something to eat too! Have a good night!” Ran quickly shoved the things she brought over against Itaru’s chest and ran out of the room. 

“...? She knew?” Itaru stared at the bag of food before looking towards the door. 

****

She collapsed at her desk as soon as she arrived at her room. Her heart was racing, both from fear and excitement. 

_ “Confronting him while he was in otaku mode was scary..”  _

The scents from the fragrance oils she used on her soap and candles calmed her mind. 

After a few minutes, she started to demold and cut the soaps she made the previous day. She decided to not make any that evening, and went to pack some orders instead. 

_ “Hmm...Maybe I should start considering selling more products. Maybe perfume or air fresheners? I need to save up some more money before the other troupes join.” _

****

“D-director! G-good morning!” Sakuya was startled when Ran had stepped out of the bathroom. She was still drying her hair with a towel as they nearly bumped into each other. 

“Oh, good morning, Sakuya-kun. You’re awake early today,” Ran walked out of the bathroom calmly.

It was still around 6 am. 

“I couldn’t wait to start practicing..,” Sakuya admitted. He looked a bit flustered, which was rather cute. 

“I’m glad to see you’re motivated, but I hope you got enough sleep?” 

“Yes!”

“That’s good. I’ll start making breakfast then.”

****

Ran made some eggs benedict, French toast, and breakfast parfaits that had some granola, vanilla yogurt, and some fresh fruit. 

The five actors-in-training stumbled into the kitchen one at a time, most of them sleepily muttering their greetings. 

“You made a lot again,” Tsuzuru looked at the dishes filled with piping hot breakfast food. “Not that I mind, but isn’t this hard on the budget? You end up making a large variety everyday..”

“Don’t worry about it, I have to make sure you all are well fed,” Ran quickly brushed it off. “I want you guys to be as comfortable as possible.”

“Director-san, are you not going to eat with us?” Itaru noticed that she didn’t come to join them at the table. 

“I already ate, since I messed up on some of the French toast,” Ran lied. 

_ “I don’t have an appetite...well, I drank some orange juice so I should be okay for a while.” _

Masumi stared at her wordlessly, as if he saw through her lie. After a while, he returned to eating his meal, not wanting to waste it. 

****

Ran sighed. 

The practice was really tense, and she had to resolve it all on her own. She knew they had a rough start, but she forgot how bad it was. Or rather, she didn’t think it was that bad, but experiencing it in real life made it feel worse. Itaru wasn’t exactly that motivated either, though it was obvious, since he loved his gaming. 

_ “I’m pretty sure it’ll be like this for a while, and since the game focused on the members, Izumi never did anything until it was absolutely necessary. I have to wait for them to come up to me. That just makes it all the more stressful.”  _

She groaned as she ran her fingers through her hair. 

_ “I was always a bystander so I guess this is just what I usually do. I’m just more worked up since they’re my favorite characters.” _

She let out another sigh. 

“I need to go out and get the packages sent today,” She started walking to her room to grab all of the packages. Thankfully her mother gave her a duffel bag— otherwise she wasn’t too sure on how she’d be able to bring everything over. 

_ “Asking for Itaru-san’s help is off limits until the end of the Spring Troupe’s debut play.” _

“...Where are you going?” Masumi caught Ran just as she was about to leave the dorm. She did mention it to Matsukawa, but she had forgotten to send the boys a message. 

“I’m going out for a moment, I’ll be back in an hour or two. Will you be a sweetheart and tell everyone that too?” Ran answered. 

“...,” Masumi’s eyes landed on the duffel bag. 

“Masumi-kun?”

“...Fine, since you want me to.”

“Thank you, Masumi-kun. Then, I’ll be going.” 

****

_ “That was heavy..! Thank god the postal office wasn’t that far away… I thought my shoulder was going to rip off.”  _

Ran zipped up the duffel bag into its compact form after giving all of the packages to the employee at the postal office. She made sure to doubt check the orders before handing them off, which took quite a bit of time. She ended up apologizing profusely since she didn’t notice how long she had ended up standing there. 

_ “I can’t believe I forgot to check them before I left the dorm...I wasted so much of their time because of that....”  _

She was definitely more tired than she initially thought. Ran still needed to return to the dorm and make lunch for everyone, not that she had to since the contract was just two free meals a day, but she wanted to make sure everyone was eating properly. 

_ “Oh, there’s a small vegetable stall.”  _ Ran checked her wallet.  _ “Let’s buy something if it’s cheap.” _

She ended up purchasing a hefty bag of vegetables since they were good quality and fairly inexpensive. 

_ “Let’s make curry today with these. I’m sure it’ll be delicious.” _

She didn’t even bother stopping the curry desires.

“Wuah, Director, that’s a lot of vegetables!” Tsuzuru was in the lounge when Ran walked into the room carrying the large paper bag. 

“They were really good quality and pretty inexpensive so I bought quite a bit. I was thinking of making a curry with these vegetables,” Ran placed the bag onto the kitchen counter and started organizing the fridge. “Do you have any requests for lunch?” 

“Huh? Is it alright? Weren’t we only supposed to have two meals a day provided?” 

“If you’re that worried, we can just whip something up with the leftovers. I was just about to have something light anyways, so it shouldn’t make a difference.” 

“Then, let’s make something together.” 

“Okay.”

Tsuzuru ended up making some sort of stir fry with the various leftovers they had while Ran decided to work on the curry for dinner, since it’ll take a while. She made some rice for lunch, along with some steamed tomatoes. 

“Director, you look pretty tired,” Tsuzuru noticed the dark circles under Ran’s eyes, now that he had a good night’s rest. 

“Mm? Really?” Ran feigned innocence. “I don’t feel that tired though.”

She was about to fall asleep any second. 

“Maybe you should get some more rest, even if you don’t feel tired. You look pretty pale too..” 

“I will once we get a little more comfortable with the script. Right now, you guys are my priority.” 

“...” 

****

“Okay; we’re going to end practice. We’re progressing slowly, but it’s what I expected, since it’s the first time you’ve probably rehearsed with a script. I want everyone to practice more on their own,” Ran shut off the alarm that signaled the end of practice. 

_ “They’re fired up, not in a good way. The tension is making everyone fumble a lot more. I don’t think this was any different than it was in the game, but it does make me worry a little more…” _

She ended up slipping into deep thought, and didn’t notice the small argument between Masumi and Tsuzuru. 

“I need to work harder…,” Ran mumbled under her breath. 

****

Ran jolted in surprise when she heard someone knocking on her door. 

“Give me a second, I need to finish something up!” She had been in the middle of pouring soap into its mold. She quickly smoothed it out and placed the lid onto the mold before covering it up with a blanket. After that, she ripped off her gloves as quietly as possible and set them on her desk before heading to her door. “Is there something you needed, everyone?”

The ones who were at her door were Sakuya, Tsuzuru, and Citron. Ran stepped out of her room and closed the door in a swift but calm manner. 

“Ah, Director, we just wanted to tell you that we decided to do some morning practice tomorrow. If you could supervise us, we would be grateful!” Sakuya revealed. 

_ “Oh, something like this happened, didn’t it? I almost forgot they came to the Director to request her supervision.” _

She smiled, “Of course. What time?” 

“6 AM,” Tsuzuru informed. 

“Thank you, Director!” Citron sent a kind smile Ran’s way. 

“Not at all. Now, you guys should get some sleep, since it’ll be an early day tomorrow,” She watched them go back downstairs before returning to her room. 

The soap making journey for the night came to its end an hour later. 

****

_ “Yeah, it would be best to start figuring out perfume recipes. It’ll take a while for the supplies I bought for the plaster air fresheners to come in, so I can make some more stock during then. I just saw some videos on making wax seals, so maybe I should dabble in that and see if it’s doable.”  _

Ran dozed off as she waited for everyone to come to the practice room. She woke up almost instantly when the boys started to shuffle in. 

“Good morning. Since it’s early, I decided to make breakfast after you guys finish this morning’s practice. Either way, I’m impressed that you wanted to do morning practice,” Ran tried her hardest to act normal, though she was exhausted. It was hard to tell if she was actually acting normal. 

“Thank you for accompanying us, Director,” Sakuya looked apologetic.

_ “Shit, I made the angel worry.” _

“It’s alright! Everyone is working hard, so I have to support you with all my might. You guys are my priority.”

Though it was a little later than everyone else, Itaru came to the practice room. 

Sakuya looked surprised to see the business man, “Itaru-san, you decided to come?!”

“Yeah, why?” Itaru raised an eyebrow. 

“You seemed busy playing games..” 

_ “He’s not even bothering to hide it. Was the torture I had to go through for naught?”  _

“I thought that waking up early was a good idea since I wouldn't waste my socgame stamina,” Itaru shrugged. 

_ “Ah, there he goes with his gamer slang.” _

Unlike Izumi, Ran had a good idea on what he was saying, so Citron didn’t need to go on a small explanation spree. 

Ran prayed practice would go smoothly this morning. 

Her prayers were answered, so she ended practice while everything was okay and everyone was motivated. 

“I hope everyone is okay with just some toast with jam and some fruits, since everyone needs to go out soon.” 

“Yes!” 

“...” Masumi wouldn’t take his eyes off of Ran. 

****

“Have a good day!” Ran sent them off with a smile, as she has been doing. 

She started walking down the hallway absentmindedly when she heard Matsukawa’s voice. She saw that he was carrying a cardboard box. 

“Do you want some help, Manager?” Ran offered her assistance. 

“No it’s okay, this is the last one,” Matsukawa declined politely. 

“What is in the box?” 

“These are the first generation’s costumes and props. I'm thinking of organizing everything at once today.”

“Can we use any of it?”

“No— I didn’t really take care of them so they look like this,” Matsukawa opened the box to show the worn out costumes and props. “I know someone who can handle the props, so please leave that matter to me!”

“Then I’m counting on you.”

“I’m also looking for someone to make costumes, i hope I can find them soon..”

“Thank you for your help.”

“Not at all! This is the least I can do so that the Director and the actors can concentrate more on practice!”

_ “He really sounds like a manager when he says that.”  _

“So how’s practice going?”

“We’ve finally managed to finish the read through smoothly.”

“I see… so in the end it’s really impossible for them to proceed like the first generation..”

“They’re doing well for the little time we have. Comparing them to the original Spring Troupe is a little unfair. Of course, they’ll need to work harder if they want to perform something that’ll make them proud of their work.”

_ “Oh that’s right! This is when Yuzo-san comes in!”  _

“Manager, can you possibly contact someone from the first generation Spring Troupe? I just thought of a way to help them.” 

_ “Well, it’ll destroy them a little first. I could try to use the advice he gave and avoid interacting with them, but having an outsider and a professional interact with them will help a lot more than me.” _

**** 

Everyone was silent when Yuzo got up and went to leave the practice room. Ran quietly followed the original Spring Troupe member to guide him out, leaving the five actors alone. 

“Ah right—,” Yuzo turned around just as Ran closed the door behind herself. 

“Yes?” Ran perked up. 

“...Don’t worry about that Romeo. I’m sure he’ll improve.”

“Yes…”

“Basically, whether he lives—.”

“I’m responsible for him, for them, for this situation, so I need to do something about it. Whether they live or die is up to me.”

“That’s the spirit. ...I wish I could show Yukio-san how you are right now.”

“I’d rather have my Father to see the performances I direct.”

There was a knowing smile on Yuzo’s face. 

****

_ “Let’s make something nutritious but simple.” _

She ended up making egg noodles with Sichuan pepper chicken and cucumber for dinner, making sure to make slightly smaller portions than normal. 

“Thank you for the food…”

“I’m full.”

“I’m full too.”

“Thanks for the food.”

“I’m going to my room.”

The responses were from Sakuya, Tsuzuru, Citron, Itaru, and Masumi respectfully. Matsukawa was shocked by how little they ended up touching.

“Eh?! You’re all done eating?! But you didn’t eat much!”

Before Matsukawa could continue edging them on, Ran stopped him with a small shake of her head. She waited for the five to leave before speaking up, “It appears that Yuzo-san’s words worked well. Thank you for contacting him.”

“It’s not a problem at all! More importantly, is everyone alright? I’m worried they’ll leave this theatre due to distress..”

“Manager, if we don’t believe them, who will? I’m sure they won’t do anything like that.”

****

Ran quietly went to the theatre and unlocked the doors for the Spring Troupe members who would inevitably come. She also decided to clean the theatre up a little, sweeping the dust off of the stage and making sure there wasn’t anything they would trip over. 

She made sure to escape before they came to the theatre and saw her. 

****

She checked up on them when it was well past midnight. Thankfully, everyone was asleep. She locked the doors back up and made her way to one of the front row seats, wrapping a small blanket around herself. 

_ “The CG for this scene was really cute, but seeing this in person really gives it a different feeling. ...I kind of feel like a stalker, but it’s okay if it’s just for a while, right?” _

This was a good excuse to take a break from work too. 

****

“....Must’ve come because she got worried..” 

“We….that we would sleep over at the theatre did we?” 

“Her sleeping face is cute..” 

“Oi, Masumi..” 

“She really..” 

“It’s ‘cares for us,’ okay?” 

It took a moment for Ran to realize what was going on. 

“ _ I must’ve fallen asleep—.” _

She groaned when pain shot through her neck. As expected, sleeping while sitting upright wasn’t the best position. She opened her eyes and saw five people looking at her. 

“Ah...I’m sorry, I got worried about you guys and I ended up falling asleep after sitting down for a while,” Ran apologized. She went to get up, but nearly fell over. 

She was caught in a pair of strong arms. They were Itaru’s.

“You okay, Director-san?” 

“I’m sorry, I’m okay now,” She was wide awake after that. 

“You look like you’re going to collapse any second, I’ll make breakfast today, so when we get back to the dorm, please get some more sleep.” 

“Thank you, Tsuzuru-kun. I’ll get some rest before morning practice.”

She managed to drag herself onto her bed and set an alarm before promptly passing out. 

_ “I need to try harder…” _

Ran when down to the kitchen to grab a glass of water when she saw a plate that was neatly wrapped on the kitchen counter. It was a plate of fried rice, probably what Tsuzuru ended up making for breakfast. 

Beside the plate, there was a small note telling Ran that it was her breakfast. 

“Thank you,” She whispered as she moved to the dining table to eat a few bites. She wasn’t exactly in the mood to eat, but it was something Tsuzuru made for her. 

She finished about half of the food and a glass of water before heading over to the practice room. 

Everyone was already rehearsing when she got to the practice room. She greeted everyone, and they all perked up to look at their Director.

“You look much better, Director-san,” Itaru commented. 

“Yeah, I feel better after a little more sleep too. Since you’re already rehearsing, keep that up while I make some preparations.” 

“Yes!”

****

“Alright, that’s enough for today,” Izumi ended practice a touch earlier than usual. “I just finished a few special training reignments for everyone, which I came up with after receiving some advice from Yuzo-san.”

“Special training?” 

“It’s to help you overcome your weaknesses,” Izumi handed everyone a piece of paper that came from her notepad. “Here, you can read this for a more detailed explanation.”

“Street acting?” Sakuya looked up at Ran. 

“I heard that practicing in a lot of performances is the best way to learn. Just practicing here will eventually stunt your growth. Try performing in Veludo Way as often as possible, and when you get used to it, you’ll be able to remain calm while standing on stage. You’ll also be able to see the movement of your co-stars and audience better.” 

“I understand!” 

Tsuzuru and Citron volunteered to be his practice partners. 

“...Mine is watching performances?” Masumi looked just a little confused. 

“Masumi-kun has the skill and talent to act, so I want you to discover what kind of performances you like. You’ll be able to deliver a charming performance if you have some form of interest in theatre.” 

“I’m not interested in anything but you.” 

_ “I forgot what ended up happening, but…” _

“It would be wonderful if you could find something that you like as much as you like me.” 

“....,” He muttered something, but Ran didn’t catch it. 

“I have a free ticket for a performance that’s currently playing. Do you want to go?” Tsuzuru mentioned. 

“I think there are also some free performances here. Let’s go watch it together next time!” Sakuya suggested.

“I’ll go by myself,” Masumi answered, as antisocial as always. 

“You’re really not cute!” 

Ran chuckled as she watched their small banter. It was far more light hearted compared to the one a few days back. 

“Good grief,” Tsuzuru sighed. “Anyways, mine is to read other playwrights’ scripts.” 

“Since you’re performing using your own script, I think your field of vision has narrowed. In order to expand it, it would be best for you to read scripts from various playwrights’ and try to act them out. The dialogue might get hard to read, but it would be nice to make this a habit.” 

“Mine’s basic training?” Itaru read his regiment aloud. 

“Itaru-san most definitely has the potential to become a splendid actor, but you’ll need to brush up on the basics. You’ve only missed practice a few times so it doesn’t stand out at the moment, but as time goes on, the difference in skill will become more obvious.” 

“...Ah— .” 

Ran didn’t push him any further, seeing that Itaru was in deep thought. 

“For Citron-kun, I would like for you to work on your articulation and intonation. I’ve selected a variety of lines for you to practice, so just make sure to read it properly.” 

“Okay.” 

“If there are any lines that are difficult for you, just tell me and I’ll change it,” Tsuzuru said as he looked at Citron’s assignment. 

Everyone soon left the practice room. Ran couldn’t help but keep an eye on Itaru. 

_ “...Itaru-san…” _

****

Ran checked on the soaps that were in the middle of their drying stage before she started on making her candles. She was running low on a few candles, meaning it was time to make a few new batches. Because she was limited with the amount of glass jars she had, she couldn’t make too many of anything. 

_ “Time to buy some more glass jars. Oh, I also need to get some more fragrance and essential oils. I don’t need any pigments, oh, but I need to buy more ribbon. I’m also running out the tissue paper to wrap the orders in.”  _

She jotted down what she needed to purchase. 

As the candle wax was melting, she quickly ordered the supplies from her supplier. After that, she started working on her candles, making sure to not burn herself. 

She waited for the candles to set by packing some orders and calling her mother. 

“Make sure you’re getting enough sleep. I know you tend to forget when you’re busy.”

“I will, thank you, Mother.”

“Have a good night, okay?” 

“Mm, good night.” 


	5. Episode One- Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I came to the realization that sometimes I call my MC, Ran, Izumi. It's a bit embarrassing, but please ignore those xD My brain is struggling a little.

When Ran decided that it was about time for a break, Matsukawa came into the practice room with two individuals. 

“I found them, Director!” Matsukawa announced gleefully. “Let me introduce them! This is our new costume designer, Rurikawa Yuki!” 

“Hello,” Yuki was curt, as always. 

_ “He looks really good in feminine clothing, though that’s expected. He’s really cute!” _

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Yuki-kun,” Ran greeted. 

“...!” Yuki appeared surprised. 

_ “Ah..Izumi is supposed to mistake him for a girl instead, oops.” _

“Oh! So this is Japanese’s male daughter!” Citron marveled.

“You really only know unnecessary things, Citron-san” Tsuzuru shook his head in defeat. 

“Are you a student?” Ran returned to the conversion with Yuki. 

“I’m in middle school now. I’ve gotten some experience from selling clothing on the net, so I should be okay though?” 

“Shouldn’t the third year students be studying for their entrance exams right now?” Tsuzuru interjected. 

“I go to an escalator school, so mind your own business.”

“I see… His tongue is just as sharp as Masumi’s…” 

Yuki ignored Tsuzuru’s comment and looked around, “I heard we don’t have much time before the performance, so I came to check on the actors as soon as possible. Who’s the protagonist?” 

“Ah, that would be me! I’m Sakuma Sakuya, please take care of me!” Sakuya nearly shot up into the air with how energetic his response was. 

“....100% energetic. Since you act like energy concentrate, I’m going to dilute you with a 4:1 ratio.”

“Eh?!”

“Okay, who’s next?”

“He’s Usui Masumi-kun, his role is Julius. Come on, greet him,” Ran introduced Masumi to Yuki. 

“I don’t have any interest in anyone except you,” Masumi declared. 

“Okay, Psycho Stalker..,” Yuki jotted down on his notebook. “How about Villager C over there?”

“I’m Minagi Tsuzuru, not Villager C! I’ll be playing Mercutio.”

“Mercutio? Okay so, Villager C’s playing Mercutio..” 

“Please stop calling me with such an elusive nickname!” 

Of course, Tsuzuru was ignored. 

“I’m Chigasaki Itaru, my role is Tybalt. Nice to meet you,” Itaru introduced himself next, using his charismatic business persona. 

“You look like a fake elite…,” Yuki cringed. 

“You saw right through him…,” Tsuzuru was amazed by Yuki’s observation. 

“How cruel.”

“I’m Citron, playing Father Lawrence,” Last but not least was Citron. 

“A fake foreigner,” Yuki concluded. He looked up at Ran next. 

“My name is Tachibana Izumi, I work as both the president and the director of the company.”

“I see. Alright, I already wrote down all the rough designs, so I’ll see you later.”

“Yes, we’ll be counting on you. Thank you very much.”

With that, Yuki left the room. Matsukawa then introduced Tetsuro-san, who would be working as the carpenter. Everyone, or almost everyone, became more hyped up now that the costumes and props were all sorted out for the most part.

****

_ “I need to go shopping soon. I’ll ask Matsukawa-san if we need anything.” _ Ran thought just before she bumped into Matsukawa. 

“Oh, Manager, I need to go shopping so I wanted to ask if we needed anything.”

“Oh, if that’s the case, then we need more toilet paper, tissues, packing tape, permanent markers, clear files, notebooks, curtains, brooms and then—.”

“?! We don’t have them here?!” Ran stared at Matsukawa with disbelief. 

“I haven’t had the time to buy them…,” Matsukawa sighed. 

“Oh, Director! You look like a police car rushing to gunshots!” Citron approached the two adults who managed the company. 

_ “The brutality..!”  _

“The saying is, ‘a dying duck in a thunderstorm,’” Ran corrected. “Oh that’s right, Citron will you come with me to go shopping if you’re free?”

“Why, of course! Going shopping with the Director is much fun!” 

“Then, we’ll be going out, Manager.”

****

At first, Ran was confused. As they went shopping, Citron had become a bit more antsy. 

_ “It’s like someone is following him—..!!” _

It finally clicked when they quickly hid in an alleyway, away from the sight of others. It wasn’t “like someone is following him” but people were actually following him. 

“They’re even chasing me here..,” Citron murmured as he looked out at the street. He had a grim expression on his face, which was unusual. “...I may be a bother to the theatre.”

Ran remained silent, waiting for the foreigner to continue.

“If the pursuers find me, they’ll take me back to my country.”

No matter how you took it, it was obvious that Citron wasn’t acting or joking around. 

“It may be better for me to not stay at the theatre.”

“Citron-kun is an important member of this theatre; everyone will be troubled if you’re not with us,” Ran whispered. “You’re not being chased because you did bad things, right?”

“No. I’m just nothing but an eyesore to them,” though he still had his accent, he was strangely fluent.

“Then you’ve done nothing wrong. I’ll cooperate with you so that you won’t get discovered,” Ran held onto Citron’s hand firmly. 

“Why would you say such a thing?”

“Because I know that Citron-kun has been trying hard to improve on your intonation and pronunciation. Not to mention, your acting has been improving. Above all else, I’m happy to see how much fun you’re having while practicing. Thanks to the Citron-kun who is always in a good mood, everyone else becomes more positive and motivated. I’m sure everyone else wants to keep reforming together with you.” 

_ “I also know who you actually are, but let’s keep that a secret for now.” _

Citron said something in another language. 

“..? What did you say?”

“I said, ‘Thanks.’”

“This much is expected, since you’re important, both to me and to the other members of the theatre.”

“I’ll put my trust in you, Director,” Citron moved to kiss the back of Ran’s hand, as a form of allegiance. 

****

_ “Itaru-san finally sent the message…” _ Ran reread the message Itaru sent her multiple times.  _ “It’s okay, as long as I say the right things, I can convince him to think about it for a little longer. Then, Sakuya-kun and the others can persuade him to stay until the end of the play at the very least.”  _

_ “...He didn’t eat a lot for dinner today, I’ll make something small for him.”  _

She ended up making a small tomato and salami pizza. Ran wasn’t sure if it was Itaru’s taste, but it was faster than waiting for delivery. She fixed up two cups of drinks before making her way towards the balcony. 

“Oh, you’re already here,” Itaru stated as he saw Ran opening the door. He looked down at the tray in Ran’s hands. “What’s with that..?” 

“I saw that you didn’t eat much for dinner, so I thought I’d make something for you,” Ran answered as she set down the tray onto the table. “It’s a tomato and salami pizza. If you don’t want to eat it, you don’t have to.” 

“....I’ve been considering this a lot, and I decided to quit the theatre. I thought it would be better to tell this to you first.” 

Ran didn’t show much of a reaction. Instead, she calmly looked at Itaru and asked, “Why do you want to quit?” 

“I originally joined this theatre because I thought I could spend my rent and food expense money on online games. I don’t have an interest in theatre, so I thought maybe I could go to practice and play a supporting role.” 

The moment Itaru made eye contact with Ran, he felt as though she already knew what he had just told her. He gulped, “But there’s so many lines, and everyone is trying their best. It makes me feel out of place, since I’m the only one who doesn’t have an interest in it. If I leave now, you’ll still have time to search for a replacement. That’s why—.” 

“Do you really not have any interest in theatre, even now? You don’t care if you can’t stand on stage with the other members?” Ran cut Itaru off. The older man looked away. “You’ve never skipped morning practice.” 

“But that was because of my game…”

“If it was only for games, I don’t think you would’ve showed up to morning practice. If it was just for games, you wouldn’t have taken my training advice seriously and start practicing basic acting skills.” 

“...To be honest, I felt like I was affected by everyone a little bit. I thought that it would be better to do my best and reduce my game time until our performance.” 

“Then, why do you think you need to quit?” 

“Unlike Sakuya or Tsuzuru, I can’t open up to them and do my best. I’m just not good at socializing with people, nor do I like communal life. That’s why it’s impossible for me to put my entire heart and spirit into theatre like everyone.” 

“Do you believe that you’ll be a bother to everyone? Is that your real reason?” 

“Well...yeah. I did practice with those guys even though it was brief.” 

Itaru felt exposed. Ran had just persuaded him to peel back a layer of his defenses with a few words. 

“Then, I want you to reconsider your choice in leaving the theatre. I believe you should wait a little bit more.” 

“But I think I’ll only cause trouble later on.” 

Ran smiled. It was a gentle, kind smile. “I’ll take responsibility.”

“...Fine. I’ll think about it for a while longer.” 

“Will it be alright if I spoke to the others about this?” 

“Yeah, I intended to talk to them about it anyways.” 

“Itaru-san,” Ran called out to the man before she left the balcony, “I’m not sure if you’re aware of this but to me, you’re an irreplaceable member of MANKAI Company, of the Spring Troupe. It hasn’t been that long since you’ve joined, but you have become someone akin to family to me. The most important matter is whether Itaru-san wants to keep doing theatre alongside everyone.” 

****

As expected, when Ran told everyone about the situation, they were rather shocked. Itaru confirmed what Ran had told the other troupe members and promised to take some more time to think about it. 

Ran was sitting in the lounge when Sakuya and Citron approached her later that evening. 

“Um, Director,” Sakuya spoke up first. 

“Is there something you needed, Sakuya-kun?” Ran turned off her phone just before Sakuya saw what she was reading. 

“I was wondering if we could borrow some of your clothes….”

_ “...? Ohhh!”  _

“Ah, sure. Let’s go up to my room, I’ll grab you a set,” Ran got up from the couch, slipping her phone into her back pocket. The two guys followed her up to her room, where she had them wait outside. 

Sakuya noticed that there was a strong scent of something like perfume coming from the Director’s room. It was different from the scent he smelled a while back. 

Ran came back out with a set of clothing, including the jacket she always wore. 

“Your room smells really nice, Director,” Citron commented as Ran handed the clothing to Sakuya. 

“I was trying a new candle. If you like it, I’ll give you one for your room. Just make sure you put it somewhere safe when you light it,” Ran went to her room once more and came back out with a beautifully crafted candle that rested inside a glass jar. It had a subtle citrus-floral scent to it. 

“Thank you, Director!” Citron gladly accepted the candle with two hands. 

“Now, you have a long day tomorrow, so get some rest.”

****

The next day, Itaru was met with a traditional Japanese breakfast in the morning. It was on the extravagant side as well.

“Director, you made something grand today,” Itaru commented as he sat down at the dining table. 

“I woke up early so I thought I’d make something nice. Having a western style breakfast everyday can get boring,” Ran hummed. “I ended up getting quite a few discounts from the stalls.” 

_ “I didn’t actually sleep, but they don’t need to know that.” _

“Thank you for the meal,” Itaru started to eat. Ran continued on making food, carefully arranging the bento boxes she decided to make. The others, aside from Citron, came down to eat as well. Citron was actually hiding in the kitchen, wearing Ran’s clothing. 

“Take this with you, Itaru-san,” Ran handed him a bento just as the businessman finished his breakfast. He was surprised and confused, but he took it anyway. “Don’t worry about it, I just wanted to make it for you today.” 

“Thank you…”

He got up to leave for work. The two highschoolers and the college student got up from their seats a few moments later. Citron stood near the door, making sure he wasn’t visible just yet. 

_ “It’s about to start.” _

“Itaru, see you later,” Kamekichi’s voice came from the hallway. 

“Kamekichi, you know my name?” 

“Itaru, you otaku. Don’t play games too much.”

“Shut up.” 

“Wait, father!” Masumi pleaded desperately. 

“....What?” Itaru’s confusion was evident. 

“You don’t really mean to divorce Mother, right?” 

“What are you doing, Masumi?” 

“Did you know Mother was crying? Dad— you actually still believe her, right?!”  Tsuzuru joined the skit.

“Wait a sec! I’ll call mother over right now!”  It was Sakuya’s turn now. 

“Even Tsuzuru and Sakuya…”

“Mother! Father is going to leave! Come on, you need to stop him!”  Sakuya grabbed Citron’s arm and pulled with desperation. 

_ “Itaru-san ends up thinking that Izumi is the mother…” _ Ran bit her lip to stop herself from laughing. 

“Dear!” Citron’s cry was so dramatic to the point it was comedic. He started to fake-weep,  “I’ll go play the slot machine...I’ll go to bet and win a trifecta in horse racing…”

“It was actually Citron?!” 

“Come on, Mother! Say something!” 

“Think it over, dad! It’s okay, we all know that you have a drinking and gambling problem!” 

“Wow...My character’s setting is terrible..”

“Mother knew all of this when she married you, Father!” 

“Are these bad habits supposed to be a reference to my gaming addiction..?”

“Please don’t say you’ll leave us…”

“Think it over, Dad!” 

Citron continued to weep loudly. 

“I want to live with you from now on too, Dad!” 

Itaru started to burst out laughing. 

“Itaru-san..?”

“You’re all...you’re all such idiots.” 

Sakuya revealed, “Last night, we all got together to figure out how to keep you here, Itaru-san...and we thought it would be best if we got you serious through theatre! We’ll make you want to act with us. So, please stand on stage with us! Believe in us, please!” 

“Sakuya, you’re really like a leader now,” Itaru praised. 

“I got it. I’ll stay until the RomiJuli performance at least.” 

“Really?!” 

“Yeah.”

“Yay!!!” 

“Thank goodness,” Tsuzuru sounded relieved. 

“All swell that end swell!” 

“All’s well that ends well, okay?” 

“You should’ve just said that to begin with.”

“Grown-ups have complicated situations going on, okay?” 

Even without seeing it, Ran knew that Itaru had a small smile on his face. 

“Now, hurry along, you’ll be late for school,” Just like a father, Itaru reminded the students before leaving the dormitory. Ran chuckled. 

“Here, I made lunches for everyone,” Ran took the chance to hand the three students their lunches. 

“Thank you very much, Director!” 

“Have a safe trip, everyone. I’ll see you tonight.”


	6. Episode One- Chapter Six

Ran’s heart danced with joy. Everyone was performing much more naturally. They still had quite a ways to go, but it was a significant improvement. Thankfully, it appeared as though they’ve been properly practicing the training menu she had prepared for them. 

It had taken a while for them to go through the read-through, but it looked like it was a good thing. 

“I’m worried about you Julius. I have to protect you as your foster brother.” 

_ “Itaru-san’s acting improved a lot now that his perception of acting changed.”  _ Ran couldn’t stop the smile that made its way to her lips. 

“Romeo...Are you Romeo Montague? You must be lying! Are you truly Romeo from the Montague family?!” 

“Be it your family or name, cast it aside, Julius! We have an even grander dream than that!” 

“No. I cannot throw my family aside.” 

_ “Mmm, that line doesn’t sound right.”  _

“Masumi-kun, would you please repeat that line one more time?” Ran requested. 

“No, I cannot throw my family aside.” 

It still felt shallow. 

_ “I’m pretty sure Masumi-kun has some issues with his family at the moment, so asking him to think about his own family while he says the line won’t help.”  _

“I know you’ve done the special training menu since I can see its effects. Let’s try this; try imagining how that actor would perform that line, and try doing it.” 

“....,” Masumi took a moment to think.  “No...I cannot throw my family aside.”

Ran clapped her hands together, “Excellent! It sounds much better now.” 

_ “I forgot who Masumi’s inspiration was...Oh well.”  _

“Really?”

“Yes! There’s more intonation than before. It’ll be even better if you could put a bit more feeling into it. We’ll work together to improve it. It might be a little difficult, but if you can read that line realistically, it’ll get much better.” 

“...I’ll try.” 

“I’ll be counting on you, Masumi-kun. Let’s stop here; make sure to review what pointers I gave today on your own.” 

“Yes! Thank you for your hard work!” 

“GJ~.”

“Nice worksies.” 

“We only have five weeks left, huh,” Tsuzuru wiped his neck with a towel. 

“Time really flies,” Sakuya nodded his head. 

“Are we going to start selling tickets soon?” 

“We do need to start getting those ready soon,” Ran answered. 

_ “It’s about time for Kazunari-kun to join. Matsukawa-san’s designs aren’t the best..” _

The website that Matsukawa showed resembled those shady websites from a decade ago, with flickering colored words in unappealing font. She looked away, feeling a headache grow as she continued to look at the website. 

“Do any of you know how to make sites and flyers? Any acquaintances?”

Sakuya apologized for not being to help while Itaru stated designing was out of his league. Citron was acting like Citron, and Tsuzuru looked like he was contemplating something. 

“Umm, I know someone who can design websites and flyers but…” 

“Could you possibly ask them?”

“He's my senior from high school, so I think I can contact and ask him,” Tsuzuru rubbed the back of his neck. 

“You’re being evasive,” Itaru noticed Tsuzuru’s hesitation. 

“Well, we don’t really get along, but I’ll contact him,” Tsuzuru pulled out his phone from his pocket. 

“Thank you, Tsuzuru-kun.”

“Is the site really no good?” Matsukawa sulked. 

_ “If you want to burn their eyes, it’s amazing.”  _

“It’s out of fashion,” Kamekichi chirped. 

“Shut up; a parrot like you would never understand this retro vibe!” 

****

Kazunari’s entrance was energetic to say the least. 

_ “He really has a strong personality, and his smile is so lively. It really heals my soul differently compared to Sakuya’s smile.”  _

Kazunari spent his time exploring the whole theatre, like a child going on a treasure hunt. Tsuzuru looked as though he was about to have an aneurysm if Kazunari stayed any longer, and the art student was sent back home. 

Ran waved goodbye to the future Summer Troupe member in a cheerful manner. 

“...He’s really annoying,” Masumi grumbled. 

“I have to agree with you on this,” Tsuzuru sighed. “Even though he’s like that, Miyoshi-san is great when it comes to designing.”

“I’ll be counting on him to create wonderful flyers and a website then.”

****

With an upgraded website, another thing was checked off the list. Yuzo came by and watched the practice run through, and his response was positive. 

“There’s no tension during the climax. It doesn’t give the vibe that the play is ending soon,” Yuzo brought up. 

“Tension...it’s because of the script right?” Tsuzuru looked a little worried. 

“No, it’s a directing issue.”

“A directing issue..”

_ “Oh, there was a sword fight in the final performance. I didn’t think much about it until now.” _

“Should I sing?!” Sakuya offered while Ran was thinking. 

“Suddenly going musical would be strange, and not in a good way,” Ran rejected. 

“Let’s kill Romeo,” next was Masumi’s suggestion.

“The story will change, and that’s way too sudden.”

“How about making a last boss?” 

“That’ll change the plot completely, Itaru-san.”

“Then I’ll take off my clothes!” Citron raised his hands up. 

“Rejected!” Ran would appreciate a half-naked Citron, but that wasn’t the time for it. “Hmm..How about a sword fight? If we do a short one, we can implement it into the script if we start practicing now. That being said, I don’t have any experience with teaching sword fighting scenes.” 

_ “I don’t even remember seeing my sister in a play that involved sword fights.” _

“I can teach them,” Yuzo offered. Ran’s eyes widened. 

_ “Oh that’s right!” _

“Would that be alright, Yuzo-san?”

“Yeah. I’m indebted to MANKAI company, after all. Furthermore, I’m impressed by your enthusiasm,” Yuzo looked over the actors with a serious gaze. 

“Thank you, Yuzo-san.”

“I’ll teach you until you can do it perfectly, so be prepared.”

“Please take care of me!” Sakuya’s response was enthusiastic. 

“He’s annoying…” Masumi muttered. 

****

_ “I’ll prepare some lemons in honey,”  _ Ran thought as she entered the kitchen. It was pretty late at night, but she wanted to grab something to drink before returning to work. It was then when she decided to use the lemons she bought rather impulsively and cover them with honey. She pulled out a mason jar and washed it out before slicing a couple of lemons thinly and placing them into the jar. After she was done, she took the honey and poured a generous amount onto the sour fruit slices, coating them thoroughly. 

“Mm. All done,” Ran twisted the lid shut and placed the jar inside the refrigerator.

“Director?” 

Ran nearly jumped out of her socks when she heard someone call out to her. 

“?! Oh, Tsuzuru-kun,” Ran saw that it was their playwright who had called out to her. “What brings you here? It’s pretty late.”

“I wanted to get something to drink since I woke up thirsty,” Tsuzuru responded. “What about you, Director? What brings you here?”

“I just finished doing something so I went to grab a glass of water.”

“Do you do this everyday?”

“What?”

“Working until late.” 

“I don’t do it that often, at least not after I accidentally fell asleep in the theatre,” It was a lie, course. She was working less, but it wasn't by much. If Tsuzuru doubted her, he didn't say anything. 

"Then, make sure to get some rest, overworking yourself isn't good for your health," Tsuzuru got himself a glass of water. "Tomorrow, can I help you make breakfast?" 

"Sure,” Ran agreed rather easily. 

Tsuzuru drank his glass of water before placing the cup in the sink to be washed after breakfast. He ended up walking Ran back to her room, though he didn’t really have a proper excuse for it. 

“Thank you for taking me back to my room, Tsuzuru-kun,” Tsuzuru snapped out of his daze. He hadn’t realized they arrived at Ran’s room. 

“Y-yeah. Make sure to get some sleep,” Tsuzuru said as he watched Ran enter her room. He noticed how there were still boxes everywhere in the Director’s room, like she had been too busy to unpack properly. “Director, did you not finish unpacking?”

“Huh?” Ran furrowed her eyebrows together. “Oh, I haven’t finished organizing a few things, but I’ve unpacked most of it. 

“Did you need some help?” 

“No, I’m alright. I’m almost done. It’s getting late, you should return to bed. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Ran quickly bid the playwright goodnight and closed the door behind her. She took a deep breath and moved to finish building the soap rack she’s been meaning to finish for a while. The soap had been drying inside the cardboard boxes, but a proper shelf would be better. 

She decided to finish the piece of furniture and to organize her soap before heading to sleep. 

****

_ “Ah. As I expected, Sakuya-kun is practicing by himself.” _ Ran peeked into the practice room and saw Sakuya practicing his swordplay. She frowned— it was well past midnight and the boy had school the next day. 

“Sakuya-kun, you’re still practicing at this hour?” Ran stepped into the practice room, a frown set on her face. 

“Oh, Director, thank you for your hard work…,” Sakuya panted as he wiped the sweat off of his chin. 

“It’s already midnight, and you have school tomorrow. You need some rest,” Ran scolded softly. It had been a week since they had started the sword practice. Compared to Masumi, who had good intuition, Sakuya was struggling. It wasn’t looking too good for him, especially when the boy had the role of protagonist with little to no experience. 

_ “It must be stressful.” _

“But just a little bit more..”

Ran’s frown deepened, “No, anymore and your body will break down. If that happens, all of your hard work will be ruined. This is the director’s order.”

“...Understood.”

“Sakuya-kun, follow me,” Ran waved her hand to beckon the Spring Troupe leader to come. He complied, following her quietly. 

Ran took Sakuya to the kitchen and lounge area, where she had him sit down on one of the couches. 

“Wait here,” Ran went into the kitchen and grabbed a mug from the cupboard. She pulled out the honey and milk, along with a small saucepan. She poured a cup’s worth of milk into the pan and heated it on the stove, gradually adding some honey into the liquid. Just before the milk boiled, she pulled the pan off the stove. The hot liquid was poured into the mug, which cooled off a little as she washed the pot. 

“Drink this, it’ll help you sleep,” Ran handed over the cup to Sakuya.

“Thank you, Director,” Sakuya took the drink and took a small sip. It was nice and warm. “It’s good..”

“I’m glad,” Ran smiled. “Whenever I have trouble sleeping, I always like to drink something warm.”

“I see…” 

“Sakuya-kun, you might think that the reason why I’m acting as director for the company is because it was once my father's passion, but in reality, that is nothing but a small part of my reason to be here,” Ran looked at Sakuya. “The reason why I decided to take over the company was because of you and the others. It’s not buildings or even the memories, but the people. I can throw away the company as long as I can stay with the people who make up the company. You are the most important aspect of this place, of MANKAI Company, so I want you to take care of yourself first and foremost.” 

Sakuya looked down at the mug in his hands. 

“Skip morning practice and get some more rest,” Ran stated.

Sakuya remained silent, and the director decided to not push him any further. When he finished his drink, Ran made sure to watch him enter his room before heading off to her own to get some sleep herself.

****

Sakuya came to morning practice despite Ran’s demand. 

“Sakuya-kun, stop,” Ran frowned. After seeing his fatigue, Ran stopped the practice session. 

“But—.”

“I’m going to remove the sword fight if you keep this up.”

“I can handle it!”

“No you can't, you're going to break down at the pace you're going, Sakuya-kun."

The other troupe members agreed, and Sakuya’s expression grew more and more frantic.

"I can do it," Masumi uttered.

"Yeah, but the scene won't work out properly if you and Sakuya-kun don't do well together."

"If we switch…," Masumi stopped mid-sentence when he saw the expression on Ran’s face. 

"We are not switching roles, so don't even bother suggesting it," Ran knew what Masumi was going to say next, and she wasn't having it. "Tsuzuru-kun wrote Romeo based off of Sakuya-kun's image, no one will be able to play the role the way Tsuzuru wants it to unless it's Sakuya-kun." 

Desperation was evident in Sakuya’s expression, and Ran shook her head in defeat. 

"I'll reconsider removing the sword fighting only if you stop going through unnecessary practice. Your health is my top priority," Ran sighed. 

_ "I am just following what Izumi said, but I am really worried about Sakuya-kun. Tonight, I’ll have to watch out for him." _

"I understand…"

"That’s enough for this topic, let's start practice. Sakuya-kun, I know you won't go back to your room and rest even if I asked you, so just sit down and watch. Observing is another form of practice." 

"Okay…" 

****

Ran ended up concluding practice a little bit earlier than planned and sent everyone off to let them get ready for their day. She didn't have time to make them lunches, so she just grabbed some water bottles and filled them with the lemon and honey mixture she had made a while back and handed them over to the boys. 

"It's honey and lemon water, to help you replenish some energy. Drink it slowly throughout the day, alright? Make sure to tell me if it's too sour or anything, I can change the recipe a little. The honey is good for your throat too.”

“Thank you, Director-san,” Itaru put the bottle in his bag after confirming that it was sealed tightly. Ran and Citron sent them all off with a smile. 

“Director is very thoughtful,” Citron hummed as he and Ran returned to the lounge/kitchen area, where she poured a cup of the honey and lemon water for the foreigner. “Thank you.” 

“You are all important to me,” Ran stated rather matter-of-factly. "It wouldn't be wrong to say I'd do anything for you." 

"Even though you bearly know us?" 

"Haha, I guess that’s true, I do not know much about everyone, but that doesn't change my feelings. We have plenty of time to get to know each other, especially if we have a successful play. Also, it's barely, alright?" 

"Director must be a saint!"

"Where did that come from? I'm not a Saint, I just want to be able to support your dreams."

****

Ran had some business she needed to do for the company, which included some accounting work. Matsukawa hadn't done a terrible job, but since Ran had more experience, she wanted to at least organize the files and compile the data so it would be easier for their manager to manage it until Sakyo came rolling by to take over the accounting. 

_ "I'm sure I can hide the fact that I'm buying the food necessities from a separate fund for a while, but I'm not sure if I can when Sakyo-san joins the troupe. I managed to get Matsukawa-san to let me take care of that part of the accounting, but Sakyo-san won't let me do that."  _

Ran struggled internally as she looked over some paperwork. She started to tap her fingers against the dining table. 

Her eyelids started to feel heavy. 

" _ I'm really sleepy…"  _ She didn't resist the lull of sleep overcoming her, resting her head against the desk to enter dreamland. 

****

"I'm home, Director— ," Tsuzuru walked into the lounge to see Ran asleep at the table with binders in front of her. "I guess I should make dinner tonight then." 

He didn't bother waking the director up, setting his bag on the couch so he could start working on making dinner. The others would be coming home soon. 

When Ran woke up, which was when Tsuzuru was about halfway done with making dinner. She was a bit flustered when she realized that one of the boys saw her asleep again. 

" _ How embarrassing…!"  _ Ran cradled her face in her hands.

"Oh, you're awake, Director," Tsuzuru looked up from stir frying some vegetables.

“A-ah, I’m sorry Tsuzuru-kun,” Ran rose from her seat. “I’ll take over so you can go and do some schoolwork while you can..”

“It’s okay, Director, I’ll take care of dinner today. You must be tired, with everything going on,” Tsuzuru urged Ran to rest some more as he continued to cook. 

“It’s what I should be doing, Tsuzuru-kun is the one who’s more fatigued since you have to go between college and acting,” Ran stepped into the kitchen. 

In the end, Ran gave in and let Tsuzuru finish cooking dinner by himself while she worked on the paperwork she had been doing until she had fallen asleep. The two high schoolers and businessman came home just in time for dinner, and they all enjoyed the meal together. 

Masumi had insisted on washing the dishes for Ran when she was about to take care of them, having noticed how she was still tired. It was unusual, but Ran accepted the offer, knowing he was going to persist until she gave in. 

Practice ended up going smoothly for the most part, which was a relief. She dismissed everyone a couple of minutes early, making sure to remind everyone to get some rest for tomorrow. 

****

Ran was about to return to her room after checking the practice room before she headed to bed when she was surprised by a moving figure in the courtyard. 

“Sakuya-kun?” Ran called out to the figure, unable to see them properly due to the darkness that surrounded them. 

_ “In this scene it should be Sakuya-kun…” _

“Woah?!” Sakuya jumped in surprise when he heard Ran’s voice from behind. He turned around abruptly in panic, only to calm down when he realized it was Ran. “Eh, D-d-director.” 

He was still a little frazzled.

“So it was you, Sakuya-kun,” Ran chuckled at his reaction. “Why are you out at this hour?” 

“I couldn’t fall asleep, so I thought I’d take a walk since I can’t practice,” Sakuya confessed. 

“Are you worried about the sword fighting scene?”

Sakuya nodded his head, “...but it’s not the only thing I’ve been worried about...I’ve been thinking about a lot. Even if I do my best, it’ll never work out and I’ll just end up failing like usual. When I think that I’m useless again, I just get scared..”

She waited for him to continue speaking, making sure to hold eye contact with him. 

“I’ve mentioned that I’ve been taken care of by my relatives all this time, right?”

“Yes, you have.”

“Every time I move, I always do my best to open up so we could get along and be like a real family, but it never works out… in the end, they always send me to another relative’s. It makes it feel like no matter what I do, it’s useless..” 

Ran bit her lip. 

_ “Oh..! Whatever!”  _

“D-director?!”

She pulled Sakuya into a firm hug, “It’s not your fault, it’s never been your fault, Sakuya-kun. The reason that those relationships didn’t develop wasn’t because you didn’t put enough effort in, but because the other party didn’t.”

She started to pat his head, “I want you to remember that if this doesn’t work out, it’s not solely your fault. Relationships can’t develop without another party. Sakuya-kun, there’s no need for you to feel responsible.” 

“Thank you, Director…” Sakuya relaxed in Ran’s hold. It was comforting. “I’m really happy to be here, to be able to place Romeo. I feel like the other members have accepted me… If the Director hadn’t stopped Masumi from suggesting a role change, I’m sure I would’ve freaked out even more..”

“Sakuya-kun really loves theatre.”

Sakuya told Ran about the time he had fallen in love with theatre. Those actors who had acted like pirates had saved him and inspired him. 

They had separated in the middle of the Sakuya’s storytelling. 

“It might be strange coming from someone who barely knows you, but I want you to know that you’re like family to me. Sakuya-kun, this place can’t be taken away from you,” Ran pressed her hand against her chest before looking out at the courtyard and then returning her gaze towards Sakuya. “Everyone has acknowledged you as Romeo and the leader of the Spring Troupe, and it’s all because of your hard work.”

“...Then I can keep staying here..?”

Ran chuckled, “Of course! Everyone would be troubled if you didn’t. You can stay here for as long as you need.” 

“Thank goodness….”

“Now that’s out of the way, what would you like to do about the sword fighting scene, Sakuya-kun?”

“I, I would like to try it!”

“Promise me that you won’t go overboard with practicing.”

“Yes! I’ll try my best!” 


	7. Episode One- Chapter Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I forgot that I needed to upload another chapter lol sorry it's late!

“Masumi-kun, Sakuya-kun, you two didn’t have breakfast and immediately went to practice,” Ran walked into the practice room with a tray that had two servings of breakfast for the two youngest members. “I brought over something for the both of you.” 

It was a simple fruit bowl with some toast and jam. She brought over some raspberry, strawberry, and grape jam for the two boys to choose from. She also brought over their preferred drinks for breakfast. 

“Oh, Masumi-kun, you’re teaching Sakuya-kun?” Ran observed the two with a gentle gaze. 

“Masumi-kun is being dere! Today is red rice!”

“It’s not like that,” Masumi ignored Citron if he had heard him and continued to guide Sakuya. “Just like that.”

“Yes! I did it!” Sakuya cheered, excited to see that he was finally doing it right.

“They’re looking really good,” Tsuzuru was impressed. 

Itaru looked over at Citron, “Did you trigger a special event yesterday? Got the flag?”

“I found the secret dialogue option!” Citron responded proudly. 

“Seriously? Kitakore. Make sure to write it on the wiki.”

“Oi, the two of you, stop talking in otaku language,” Tsuzuru exasperated. “But seriously, what’s gotten into you Masumi?”

“Nothing. I just didn’t want him to drag me down anymore,” Masumi grumbled. 

“As long as Masumi-kun continues to lead Sakuya-kun and Sakuya-kun doesn’t overexert himself, it looks like we’ll be able to make it before the performance,” Ran said. 

“Really?!” Sakuya became even more excited. 

“Yeah. Good job,” Ran smiled. “Now, come and eat some breakfast.”

****

Excitement jolted through Ran’s body when she saw the costumes that Yuki had brought over with the help of Matsukawa. 

“The rough designs were wonderful, but the costumes are incredible,” Ran complimented. “You’re a professional, Yuki-kun.” 

“I was worried when I heard you were in middle school, but you’re really like a pro,” Tsuzuru admitted as he examined his costume. 

“Of course. I’m going to make adjustments, so put the costumes on and move around.”

Ran watched over them with a kind smile.

“How’s the guest collecting going?” Yuki asked as soon as Matsukawa mentioned how he really started to feel how the performance was approaching them. 

“Eh?!” Matsukawa looked alarmed. 

_ “Ah...this scene. He only sold four tickets at this point.”  _

“What do you mean, ‘eh?’ You started selling tickets, yeah?”

Manager feigned, “Ah, ah! Now that you mention it, we have~~!”

_ “A terrible actor.” _

“Judging from your reaction, I should’ve taken care of the tickets,” Ran sighed. She had completely forgotten about the tickets. “Let me guess, you’ve sold four tickets.”

“H-how did you know?!” 

“...I put too much faith in you,” Ran deadpanned. “Let me guess, the four guests are you, Tetsuro-san, Yuzo-san, and Kamekichi.”

Matsukawa flinched. 

“That’s just people we know! Not to mention, you can’t take money from Kamekichi!” Tsuzuru looked like he was going to faint. 

“We have three weeks, you know,” Masumi brought on another layer of dread. 

“Sounds like trouble,” Itaru pulled out his phone.

“It’ll be our hello and our goodbye performance,” Citron joked, though it didn’t seem like a joke at this point. 

“Please, this isn’t a laughing matter!” Sakuya panicked. 

“It’s my fault for not checking up on this matter sooner, but you have to tell me these things as well, Matsukawa-san,” Ran sighed. “In case you’ve forgotten, the final performance has to have a full audience or else the company will be forced to shut down.”

“I’m sorry,” Matsukawa deflated. 

“Either way, we need to work on advertising, especially since we have beautiful flyers and an improved website made by Kazu— Miyoshi-kun. It would also be disappointing if I can’t show off the talents of my actors and the costumes that Yuki-kun made.” 

“Manager, how many page views does the website have?” Itaru asked as he continued to scroll through whatever site he was on his phone. 

“Huh? Pa— what?” Matsukawa looked genuinely confused. 

“The number of people who have visited the site. Let’s spread it around; I’ll introduce it on my account, I think I have around 50k viewers.”

“That’s a lot?!” Tsuzuru looked at Itaru as though the man had grown horns on the top of his head. 

“Maybe we should open a blog too. If the members write stuff, people might feel closer to us and be more willing to buy tickets to our performances.”

“That’s a good idea, I’ll leave that to you, Itaru-san. The rest of us should distribute flyers in town.” 

Tsuzuru, Sakuya, and Citron agreed verbally. 

“...hand over a ticket,” Yuki held out his hand. 

“Huh?” Matsukawa turned his head to look at Yuki. 

“Then you’ll have five tickets sold. I want lots of people to see the outfits I worked hard on, so I’ll help you advertise.” 

“You’re a lifesaver, Yuki-kun,” Ran’s smile was as bright as ever. 

_ “Everything is going as planned, this is good.” _

****

Before she went to work on her store, she checked the blog that Itaru had set up. 

_ “Everyone’s written something on it already. Haha, they’re so like them. Citron’s has so many typos, I’ll have to get someone to edit it for him.”  _

She was tempted to write something for herself, but decided it was best to keep it as the actors. There was no need for her to make herself public. 

_ “As long as I can be with them and support them, I’ll be satisfied.” _

She moved on to her shop. 

_ “Oh, there’s quite a few sales. I’ll pack what I can tonight..oh, and I guess I can talk on my social media about my new series of soaps and candles…”  _

She needed to save as much money as possible. 

****

Ran took everyone except Itaru to go out and pass out flyers, with little success until Masumi started a street act. Ran cheered internally as people started to gain interest for their performance.

“What a bunch of low-level actors.”

_ “Ah. It’s Haruto-kun. If he’s here then…” _

“Don’t say that, Haruto.”

_ “Tasuku-san!” _

Ran fell into a daze as she looked at Tasuku, admiring him. She blinked out of it as soon as she realized what she was doing.

“Who do you think—.”

_ “Ah!!! Tsuzuru-kun gets into an argument with Haruto-kun, I forgot!”  _

“Tsuzuru-kun, calm down,” Ran placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled at the God Troupe’s top actors, “I apologize for my member’s actions.”

“Yeah, me too,” Tasuku didn’t have the tone of being genuinely apologetic, but Ran could tell he was. 

The crowd started whispering amongst themselves.

“Are you the representative for this company?” Haruto turned his attention to Ran. 

“I’m the director and the president,” Ran responded calmly. 

“Heh, then show me what you’ve got too. I want to see how good the director is if the actors are like this,” mockery filled his expression. 

_ “Haruto-kun really doesn’t have an intention of being nice does he?” _

“What is with this guy,” Tsuzuru was becoming even more upset.

“He’s really unpleasant.”

_ “Even the angel Sakuya-kun is getting upset!” _

“— If he’s looking for a fight then bring it on,” Masumi looked ready to throw hands. 

“It’s alright, everyone. No need to get upset over this,” Ran reassured, trying to calm their nerves. 

_ “Hm...what should I do..? I’ve acted quite a few scenes with my older sister so she could rehearse, so maybe I should do one of those…” _

Ran’s eyes sparkled as she remembered a specific scene that her sister had forced her to rehearse countless times. 

_ “I still don’t know why she lectured me on my acting...oh well.” _

“How could you do this to me?!” Ran screamed painfully as she glared at Tasuku, pretending he was the other character.  “You...you betrayed me!”

Ran looked down, acting as though she was ashamed to face the person directly. She choked,  “Yes...I did. I betrayed you, took everything from you and left you all alone in an unknown place. You must’ve been scared and confused, and just when you were about to accept everything, I appeared and ruined everything.”

A melancholic smile graced her lips as she looked back up at Tasuku. She walked up to him and pretended to reach out and touch his cheek,  “It’s about time I repaid you.”

Then, Ran’s expression warped with confusion,  “What..?” 

With that, the scene had ended. 

“W-what? You must be joking right? The president has the worst skill,” Haruto stepped back, his expression cringing in disgust. 

“...,” Tasuku frowned at Haruto’s insult. 

“Don’t you feel sorry for those guys for teaching them with that kind of skill?”

Even though she didn’t feel insulted, her heart twisted in pain. She took a deep breath. 

“I’ll kill you—,” Masumi growled. Ran grabbed his wrist to stop him. 

“Stop it, Haruto. You went too far,” Tasuku looked completely fed up with his fellow group member’s attitude. 

To keep the conflict from escalating, Tasuku apologized once more and gave them his blessing for a good performance. Ran quickly accepted it, handing two flyers to the tall actor. 

“Annoying…,” Masumi mumbled as soon as the two actors were out of sight. Ran let his wrist go. 

“Let’s continue with the promotion, yeah?” Ran adjusted the flyers so they’d sit more comfortably on her arms. 

“Director..,” Sakuya was worried. 

“I’m glad you didn’t take it to heart,” Tsuzuru was relieved to see that Ran wasn’t affected by the insults. 

“They were just wasting their tire,” Citron’s input was as bizarre as ever, and Ran couldn’t help but laugh a little. 

“I think you mean ‘time,’ Citron-kun. I’m alright, there’s nothing for you to worry about. Even if I minded what he said, I can’t do anything about it, since I don’t actually have talent for acting,” Ran brushed off Haruto’s attitude like it was nothing. She returned to work, “Please come and watch MANKAI Company’s performance,  _ Romeo and Julius _ !”

“Ummm...can I please have a sheet?” 

Ran’s mood instantaneously brightened. 

_ “Muku-kun!! Another angel has descended and graced me with his presence!!” _

“Of course! Here you go!” Ran handed Muku a flyer with newfound excitement. 

“Thank you…” Muku then rushed off.

“We will be performing  _ Romeo and Julius _ soon, please come and watch!”

“Haah..? An all male version of RomiJuli? What bizarre play is this?”

_ “Tenma-kun!”  _

Ran smiled, “Here’s a flyer, please take it. I would be delighted if you came and watched as well.”

“...Thanks.”

****

“Director, I’ll help you wash the dishes,” Citron offered as everyone finished their dinner, which happened to be seared tuna with Fijian-Style potato curry. 

“Thank you, Citron-kun,” Ran accepted the offer as she started to dish the leftovers into some containers so she could put them into the fridge. There was a comfortable silence between them. 

“Are you really okay, Director?” Citron broke the silence just as Ran finished putting everything in the fridge. 

“Hm?” Ran closed the fridge door. 

“This afternoon…” 

“Ah… I was more upset about him insulting you guys and your hard work,” Ran admitted. “No matter how terrible people think I am as an actor, if I can help you guys create a once in a lifetime performance, then I’ll be satisfied.”

“Director..”

“There’s nothing for you to worry about, but thank you.”

“...Okay,” Citron didn’t seem convinced, but he didn’t push the conversation any further. 

****

The next time Yuzo came by to the dorm was when he decided to invite everyone to watch a performance at the theatre he taught at. They had been in the middle of their morning practice session, and Ran was startled by his sudden appearance. 

Ran dismissed everyone so they could get ready to go out. 

_ “I was planning on mailing out my orders today, I wonder if I can get out of this..” _ Ran looked at her phone. 

“You’re coming with us, Ran. It’ll be a good experience for you too.”

_ “Did he read my mind?”  _

“I understand, I just have to reschedule some plans.” 

****

The Spring Troupe members were awed by the performance that Yuzo had directed. It was overwhelming. When they returned home, they immediately started a meeting to discuss how they could improve their own play. 

Excitement practically rolled off Sakuya’s shoulders, and everyone seemed to follow his pace in their own way. Ran chuckled, everyone was so hyped up.

“Alright, I’ll make arrangements for the stage along with finding some extras to help with the performance,” Ran wrote everything down in her notepad to make sure she would get everything the boys wanted. “For the ad libbing and special elements, you guys should plan that out. I’ll be here if you need any help, as always.”

“Yes! Thank you, Director!” 

****

“...? Tsuzuru-kun, you’re still awake,” Ran was surprised to find the college student sitting in the courtyard, looking up at the night sky. She was on her way to refill her mug with some more coffee. 

“I’m a bit restless,” Tsuzuru admitted sheepishly. 

“I see,” Ran nodded her head. “Ah, I’ll be right back.” 

“Huh?” 

“Just wait here for a minute.”

When she returned, she had a mug in each hand, both which had some steam coming off of them. She handed a cup to Tsuzuru before taking a seat beside him. It was a cup of warm milk with honey.

“Why are you restless?” Ran asked as she took a sip of her black coffee. The bitterness always helped her wake up. 

“Whenever I close my eyes, the image of the play this afternoon pops up in my head,” Tsuzuru held the warm cup in his hands. 

“It was a splendid performance,” Ran hummed. “I was a bit worried that the performance would cause you to feel down like Yuzo-san’s criticism had, but that didn’t happen.” 

“No, to be honest, I was scared and I felt down. It’s just that we don’t have time for that kind of attitude, so I just managed to pull myself together.”

“Your mentality has grown stronger, that’s why you managed to pull yourself together.” 

“...Yeah, but I actually wanted to do theatre earlier. If I did, I would have basic experience and would’ve been able to do various things.”

Tsuzuru opened his heart to Ran, admitting his past regrets. Ran just listened, watching him as he came to terms with his frustration and lack of determination. 

“Isn’t it fine? Starting out a little late. Because of your family situation, you joined MANKAI Company, which allowed you to meet everyone. Not to mention, your original RomiJuli wouldn’t have existed.”

“...You're right. I could write RomiJuli because I met you guys and because of the first generation’s RomiJuli.”

“You were able to work hard on writing the script and finished it in one week because of your frustration.”

“Haha, I was really desperate. I thought I would never be able to write it if I didn’t write it now,” Tsuzuru’s shoulders slumped down in relief. “Yeah, it wasn’t pointless.”

“You should continue to write from now on, for yourself and the company. You're our official playwright now."

"Official...that's a bit too much…" 

Ran smiled reassuringly at Tsuzuru, "It's not, Tsuzuru-kun." 

"Then, the company will have to succeed so I can keep writing." 

"We will succeed."

"Where does your confidence come from, Director?"

Ran patted Tsuzuru on the head affectionately, “Why, from you and the rest of the company, of course! The reason why I want this company to succeed is because I want your dreams to come true, so there’s no one better than me to put my trust in than the actors themselves.”

_ “You’re all far more important than this company.”  _


	8. Episode One- Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo this should be the right chapter lol, please notify me if it's still the same as chapter 7. My eyes don't work apparently.

Sakyo was standing in the rehearsal room, standing tall and with his arms crossed against his chest. The three who met him previously appeared to be put off by his presence, and before Ran had stepped in, they looked like they were battling out who would call out to the debt collector. 

“You really summoned her—,” Tsuzuru was surprised at how perfect the timing was between Itaru’s summoning and Ran entering the room, having finished washing the dishes. 

“Good morning, Sakyo— ah, Furuichi-san,” Ran greeted the yakuza in a calm and collected manner. “What brings you here to this humble dorm?”

_ “He’s still intimidating, but it’s not really that scary, since I’m used to him, more or less..” _

“Have the tickets for the final performance sold out yet? You’ll fail even if there’s only one empty seat,” Sakyo interrogated. Ran couldn’t find her voice. 

_ “Ah, maybe I’m not.” _

“I’m aware,” Ran finally managed to respond. “Thank you for your reminder, I’ll continue to work hard.”

“...Hmph, as long as you know.” 

With that, the future Autumn Troupe member left the room. 

“Did he come here just to say that?” Sakuya pouted.

“What a bad personality,” Tsuzuru’s eyebrows knitted themselves together. 

“...Annoying,” Masumi’s response was the same as always. Everyone looked a bit irritated and restless, making the atmosphere in the room gloomy. 

“The final performance hasn’t sold out?” Itaru questioned. 

“Compared to the other days, it’s doing well, but it’s not enough,” Ran confessed. 

“This is rough..,” Tsuzuru sighed. 

“I wonder if there’s a better way to sell more tickets,” Sakuya pondered. 

“How about adding handshake (meet and greet) tickets?” Citron suggested.

“We don’t have a pre-established fan base, or else that would be a splendid idea. We just started up, so no one knows of us,” Ran shook her head.

_ “I remember there being a television interview, but not how they — _ .”

“Heya, team~!” 

_ “Ah.” _

Kazunari magically appeared, and Ran could practically see the heart animation floating at the top of his head. 

“Miyoshi-san? What are you doing here?” Tsuzuru was surprised by Kazunari’s sudden appearance.

“Just wanted to drop by and check in to see how you all were doing~,” Kazunari responded rather nonchalantly. 

“Is that so..”

“Hmm? Is it just me or is the atmosphere, like, real dark in here?”

“The ticket sales aren’t going as well as we wanted them to so we were thinking about how to do more promotions.”

“For real? Won’t you be out on the streets if you don’t sell? That’s no bueno, right?”

“That’s right, so—.”

“Kazunari-kun, you look like you have an idea,” Ran interrupted Tsuzuru with her statement. 

“Oh, yeah! You should just go on TV!” Kazunari declared. 

“Mmm, that would be difficult, since we can’t just waltz into a TV station and expect them to accept our request.”

“Sure they will! Leave it to me, I’ll put in a good word for you! I’m going to make a few calls now, good luck!” With that, he left as abruptly as he came. 

“...He’s always like that,” Tsuzuru exasperated. 

“Don’t trust him…,” Masumi grumbled. 

“He’s just trying to help us in his own way, I’m grateful,” Ran said as she checked the time. “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could advertise on TV?”

****

“That’s good, let’s stop and take an hour break,” Ran announced. Everyone was improving. 

“Excuse us!” An unfamiliar voice came from the door, and Ran turned her head to see who it was. “Hello~, we’re looking forward to working with you today!”

“A camera?” Sakuya eyed the large camera one of their sudden guests had brought in. 

“Wonder what’s going on,” Tsuzuru said. 

“I’m Anzai, the director of Veludo TV. I came to interview you for  _ The Show _ ,” The man who came in first introduced himself. 

“I see, thank you for coming all the way over here. I’m sorry, it seems like our manager forgot to inform us that you were coming, so we didn’t expect you,” Ran bowed her head apologetically. 

“Would it be alright to interview you then..?” 

“Of course, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” she held her hand out for a handshake. 

She could hear the Spring Troupe members mumbling amongst themselves, and chuckled softly. 

_ “They’re getting along more and more.” _

****

The interview began shortly after. Ran could tell that Tsuzuru and Sakuya were nervous. 

_ “I’ll give them something to calm them down afterwards.” _

“Alright, the camera is rolling!” Anzai announced. 

“Hello!” The reporter started off cheerfully. “Today, in visiting the training room of the historic MANKAI Company, a long-standing theatrical troupe highly regarded among the theatrical community. First, let’s speak with Tachibana Izumi, the director and supervisor of the company. It seems you went with an all-new roster for the upcoming show, yes?”

“That’s correct, they’re all new members that I’m incredibly proud of and would love to continue to support,” Ran’s response was fluid and calm. 

_ “Just think of this as talking to a customer..” _

“As expected of their director! It seems like this show is Romeo and Juliet with a twist. Can you give us a general idea of what to expect?”

“Rather than a romance between Romeo and Juliet, we’ve decided to perform a story involving the friendship between Romeo and a male Juliet. If you’re interested, please check out the company’s website, as there’s tickets still available.”

“Thank you very much. Moving on, I would like to hear some insight from the cast members,” the reporter went over to the actors. Ran made sure to step away to avoid being seen by the camera. “Let’s start with the two leads, Sakuma Sakuya-kun and Usui Masumi-kun!” 

_ “Thankfully, Itaru-san’s charismatic businessman side regrouped everything back together, so it went fairly well. It was quite entertaining watching the others struggle a little.” _

“Thank you for your time, Tachibana-san. If something comes up in the future, please take care of us,” Anzai stated after confirming that everything was set. 

“Likewise, thank you very much,” Ran nodded her head. 

“Good luck on your performance,” The reporter cheered everyone on.

“Thank you very much,” Ran smiled. “I’ll take you to the entrance. Guys, take a breather until I come back.” 

Ran bowed, bidding the TV crew goodbye at the entrance of the dorm. She took a deep breath, hoping it would calm her racing heart down. 

****

With almost everyone out of the dorm, Ran finally found some time to go out and bring her orders to the post office to mail. Just like last time, it was heavy, and she ended up deciding to make another trip to lessen the load. 

_ “It’s rough without a car… but I don’t want to ask Itaru-san.” _

“You have a lot this time as well,” the same employee greeted her at the post office. 

“I do, I’m sorry for the trouble,” Ran apologized sheepishly. “I own a small online business so these are all customer orders.”

“I see. It’s not a problem, you’re helping our business as well.”

“I checked everything beforehand, so it shouldn’t take as long as it did last time,” she placed the duffel bag onto the counter. The employee took the bag and started organizing everything.

By the time she delivered all of the orders, she was exhausted. Ran sighed.

_ “Maybe I should just ask Itaru-san. There’s no point in being stubborn.” _

****

Ran jumped at the sound of someone knocking on her door. She had just finished checking the ticket sales along and was about to start on packing more orders. 

“Give me a minute,” Ran shut her laptop and slid the box of candles back under her desk, quickly moving everything so it would be relatively out of sight. She pulled the curtain over the soap rack before sitting down on the couch. “You can come in.” 

Masumi opened the door and entered. 

_ “Right, it’s Masumi’s turn now.”  _

“Masumi-kun, is there something you needed? It’s pretty late,” Ran tilted her head to the side a little.

“...How do you think I’m doing lately?” Masumi questioned. 

“How have you been lately? You’re doing well.”

Masumi’s eyes sparkled, “Really?”

“Even Yuzo-san praised you.”

“Who cares about that old guy? I’m doing this for you.” 

_ “Do I really have to shoot him down?” _

“Masumi-kun, I’m glad that you’re doing this for me, but it would be better if you were striving for personal growth instead of my—.”

And Masumi proceeded to run away. 

_ “I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry,” _ Ran chanted in her head, in an attempt to beg for forgiveness. 

****

Masumi ended up skipping both breakfast and morning practice to avoid meeting up with Ran, breaking her heart in the process.

_ “No!!! I’m sorry Masumi-kun, please don’t avoid me!! I didn’t want to do it either!! It’s for the sake of the plot!!” _

“To think that Masumi is avoiding the Director… What’s next, figs flying?”

“It’s pigs.”

Sakuya ended up skipping morning practice as well, being worried about Masumi. 

_ “Forget the performance that's happening in a week, my heart is going to give out if he keeps ignoring me.”  _

****

“Masumi-kun, let’s talk?” Ran pleaded quietly as she carefully approached the high schooler, only for him to avoid her. “Please, Masumi-kun..?”

He looked down to avoid her gaze. 

“He’s acting like a sulking brat, geez,” Tsuzuru sweat dropped. “Ah..! Oh, crap!”

“Huh?” 

“I just remembered that we don’t have enough ingredients to make dinner! Director, could you go buy some eggs?”

“I thought— oh, I did use up the eggs didn’t I?”

Tsuzuru’s acting was strained, but Ran did end up using the rest of the eggs in the fridge this afternoon while she was making spiced coconut eggs. 

“Go on Masumi, you should go with her and help her carry the bags!” Tsuzuru urged insistently, clearly not letting the youngest decline. Masumi made a noise of displeasure. 

“Thank you for reminding me, Tsuzuru-kun. I’ll go buy them now.”

“Take your time~!”

Masumi still refused to make eye contact with her and remained dead silent. They were on their way back home when Ran decided to speak up, “Masumi-kun—.”

“Hey, isn’t that Masumi-kun?! To see him here, lucky!” A high school girl practically squealed in delight. Ran carefully took a step away from Masumi as the two younger girls approached them. 

“Masumi-kun~ let’s shake hands~!” The other high school girl requested. 

Irritation became evident in his expression, “...Move.”

“Good luck on your performance! We’re rooting for you!” The high schooler continued on rambling, oblivious to Masumi’s mood. 

“We’ll invite all of your friends to watch it!”

_ “I need to get Masumi out of this situation.” _

“I’m sorry, but Masumi-kun needs to get going soon or he’ll be late for evening practice.” 

“Who’s the cougar? Your manager?” Compared to the high pitched squealing, the high school girls took on a tone of venomous mockery when they faced Ran. 

_ “I’m not that much older than you, nor is Izumi! When I first started this game I was barely older than you!” _

“Good evening, I work as the director of Masumi-kun’s troupe,” Ran introduced herself with a slightly stiff expression.

“Huh, so the old lady’s the director.”

“I thought you were like, his manager or personal assistant or whatever.”

“So if you’re the director, does that mean you’re the one who hired him?”

“Yes, I did.”

_ “Andddd the next dialogue line is…” _

“Wow, you must’ve gone through some crazy lengths to get close to him.”

_ “I knew it.” _

“Excuse me?” 

“Oh come on! We know how this works with cougars like you.

“Eww, you’re already old and yet you aim for high school boys! Talk about low!”

“Someone should report it to the cops.”

_ “....” _

Ran stood there in silence. 

You…!” Anger boiled through Masumi’s voice, unable to take it anymore. This was the first time Ran had heard him genuinely furious ever since she had come. 

He raised his hand up and—

_ “Shit—!” _

“Don’t—!” Ran stepped in front of Masumi and his slap hit her cheek. She silently endured the pain, wincing as she touched it to see if there was any blood. 

“Eh? What the..?”

Masumi’s anger changed into panic, and his voice continued to break up, “...! S-sorry, I didn’t mean to hit you—!”

“I’m okay, Masumi-kun,” Ran reassured him as much as she could, not that he believed her. 

“Um...was it something we said?” 

Ran faced the two girls with a smile despite the pain from her protesting cheek muscles. 

_ “Literally the whole conversation was wrong, but setting that aside..”  _

“To you, Masumi-kin’s looks might be the biggest merit, but I didn’t recruit him just because he has a nice face. Come and see the performance, you’ll see what I mean, alright?” 

“Oh, yes..and uh, sorry…”

“Let’s just go..” 

The two high school girls finally left with that. Ran turned to look at Masumi.

“Masumi-kun?”

_ “And now he looks like he just got his heart broken.” _

“Masumi-kun, let’s go back to the dorm, okay?” 

****

“We’re home,” Ran announced as she and Masumi entered the lounge/kitchen area where the rest of the Spring Troupe was waiting. 

“Ah, welcome back!”

“You are most welcome back.”

“Welcome back.”

“Did you make up...nope, I don’t have the impression that you did,” Tsuzuru’s expression grew concerned. 

“Mm, some stuff ended up happening,” Ran responded as she carefully took the bag of groceries Masumi was carrying into the kitchen. The eggs weren’t broken, thankfully. 

“Masumi-kun, are you okay?” Sakuya asked as he saw Masumi’s expression. 

“He’s gotten worse than he was before he left,” Tsuzuru noted. 

“Hm? Director-san, isn’t your cheek a little red?” Itaru noticed the bruise that was forming on Ran’s cheek as she came back out of the kitchen. 

“Ahaha..,” Ran tried to laugh it off, only to hiss in pain. It still stung quite a bit. 

“Haah… Care to fill us in?” Tsuzuru sighed. It seems like he’s been sighing quite a bit these days. 

_ “I guess I should leave them alone.” _

“I’ll go back to my room to put some ointment on,” Ran started to walk out of the lounge. 

She went up to her room, and like she said, she went and put some ointment on the bruise that was forming on her cheek. 

_ “I guess I could’ve just grabbed his arm or stopped the conversation from going in that direction before it was too late,” _ Ran thought to herself as she applied the cream. She flinched as pain shot through her muscles every time she touched it. “ _ It hurts..! Masumi-kun didn’t hold anything back…” _

She applied some gauze to avoid touching it, only to stare at herself in the mirror due to how ridiculous it looked. 

“Let’s do some work—,” Ran was about to open her laptop when her phone started to ring. She answered, “Oh, Mom?” 

“Izumi, how are you?” 

“Ah, I’m doing pretty good. I’m sorry, I forgot to call you these past few days, the performance is around the corner so I’ve been busy these days.” 

“I’m sure you’re busy, but you have to remember to take care of yourself, okay? Are you eating properly?” 

“I am,” Ran promised. 

“You’re not eating curry everyday, are you?” 

“I’m not, I’m not! I have to keep everyone’s preferences in mind, so I haven’t been making curry everyday.”

“That’s good. Even though you know so many curry recipes, I just don’t think it’s good for your health, to eat that much of it. Are you the only one cooking? Isn’t it tiring, to be doing it all by yourself?”

“I like cooking for them so it’s not tiring, but they do help me out whenever they can.”

“Well, I’m reassured to hear that you’re enjoying yourself, Izumi. When you have time, come home and visit me, alright?” 

“It’ll take a while, since there’s a lot of things I have to do, but I’ll make sure to go see you when I can.”

“That’s good. Then, I’ll leave you alone, Izumi.”

“Take care of yourself, Mother.”

“You as well, bye bye.”

“Bye bye.”

The call ended just in time for Ran to hear someone knocking on her bedroom door. 

“Yes?”

“...It’s me..,” Masumi’s muffled voice came from the other side of the door. Ran went over and opened the door. 

“Are you feeling better?” Ran asked affectionately. Masumi remained silent, and Sakuya quietly urged him. Ran let the two younger ones into her room.

“Sorry for earlier..,” Masumi apologized earnestly as he sat down on the couch. 

“Huh? About what?” 

“Hitting you. Ignoring you.” 

“It’s alright, I was the one who stepped in front of you, and you were getting mad on my behalf, right? That being said, even if you’re angry, you can’t hit others, okay?”

“...You’re not mad?” Masumi looked up at Ran with eyes full of hope. 

“Not at all, I was never mad,” Ran reassured. “I was more worried that I made you upset with what I had said, Masumi-kun.”

“I’m not upset...I just don’t know anymore,” Masumi admitted. 

“What don’t you know?”

“What to do. What am I supposed to act for?”

“I want Masumi-kun to like theatre for the sake of theatre, to have an appreciation towards acting so you can keep on acting for your own sake. A reason that wasn’t me,” Ran explained. “That’s why your special training involved finding a favorite performance.”

_ “I think this is what Izumi says..” _

“I’ve always had a favorite act…”

“You have?”

“Your acting.”

“Mine?”

“I liked the street act that you did back on Veludo Way... I just tried as hard as you did.” 

_ “I’m sure he’s only saying that of the game plot but...It makes me happy to hear that.”  _

Ran let out a laugh, “You like my acting? Even though it’s so terrible?” 

“That doesn’t matter.” 

“Haha, thank you, Masumi-kun.” 

“For what?” 

“...Nothing. Either way, it’s great that you’ve found the performances that you like.” 

“...Like.”

Within a blink of an eye, the distance between Ran and Masumi was merely a few centimeters. Ran’s cheeks flushed red, this time from being flustered. 

“Masumi-kun…?!” 

“I love you..” 

_ “Agh! My heart!!”  _

“Woah! Masumi-kun, no! Stop! You need consent from the other people for this sort of thing!” Sakuya came barging into the room, effectively snapping Ran out of her daze. Sakuya quickly pulled Masumi away from Ran. 

“Sakuya, you’re in the way!” 

_ “I’m too weak for their faces.”  _

“It’s a crime if you force yourself onto someone—huh..? Did you just call me by my name?” Sakuya stared at Masumi. 

“Oh, now that you mention it..,” Ran had been too flustered to pay attention.

“You called me by my name for the first time!” Sakuya looked like he was going to cry. 

“Shut up…,” Masumi’s words didn’t have the usual bite they had. 

“I’m happy, Masumi-kun!” 

“...Annoying..” 

“You can let go of Masumi-kun, Sakuya-kun,” Ran waved her hand. The redhead removed his arms from Masumi, albeit rather hesitantly. She let him sit down beside her and then moved to hug him in a comforting manner. 

“..!”

“Thank you for talking to me, Masumi-kun. Let’s continue to work hard together, okay? The Spring Troupe isn’t the Spring Troupe without you.” 


	9. Episode One- Chapter Nine

Before everyone knew it, the date for the dress rehearsal arrived. The tickets for the final performance hadn’t sold out yet, but Ran wasn’t particularly concerned. What she was worried about on the other hand, were the mental states of her actors. 

“Tomorrow is the performance day. This will be our last practice session, so I would like you to imagine having an actual audience,” Ran proceeded to give the Spring Troupe their instructions. “I’m sure you’re pretty anxious, but make sure to do your best and support each other.” 

Ran watched them from the center of the auditorium to get a good look at the stage as a whole. She made some careful notes in her notebook. As expected, the small mistakes everyone was making here and there were affecting the performance’s flow, as they were inexperienced and unable to cover for each other. That being said, they didn’t make any large blunders that forced Ran to stop the whole performance. 

“Alright everyone, come here,” Ran motioned them to come up to the front of the stage. She looked up at them, waiting for everyone to collect their thoughts. 

“How was that?” Tsuzuru asked everyone. 

“Hmm,” Itaru held his chin in his hand as he pondered. 

“Not too good,” Masumi responded. 

“Can’t really get into it,” Citron admitted. 

“I’m sure there will be moments in the performance where it doesn’t go how you want it to, but I want you to make sure you pull yourself out of it. If possible, it would be good for you to support each other,” Ran reminded everyone. 

“Yes.”

“Got it.”

“Yeah.”

“How are the ticket sales going?” Itaru inquired. 

“There’s some leftover, but if we get a good reputation from our performances, we should be able to sell out on the last day.”

“If we make our way through each and every performance, I’m sure our audience will come visit us again! Let’s do our best!” Sakuya cheered everyone up. 

Ran chuckled, everything was going to be alright.

****

Matsukawa’s knees are shaking uncontrollably, while Ran had a rather calm appearance. 

“I-I-It’s finally performance day!” Matsukawa stuttered. “I’m getting nervous…!”

“Please calm down, you’ll make everyone nervous,” Ran sighed. “How many seats do we have filled?” 

“The TV program must’ve been effective; we’re doing fairly well.”

Ran faced the actors with an uplifting smile, “Go on, enjoy the thrill of being on stage for the first time! I’ll be here to support you.”

****

Ran watched the whole performance from the backstage, making sure to give the actors their towels and bottles of water whenever they came back. She made sure to whisper words of encouragement, in hopes they would remain motivated. 

That being said, it didn’t seem like they really needed it. The adrenaline kept them going. 

The exhausted leads return backstage as the last scene finished. 

The audience started to applaud so loudly that it ended up resembling thunder. 

“...this is what they call an applause, right?” Tsuzuru asked no one in particular. 

“The audience.”

“Amazing..,” Itaru was surprised by the noise.

“It sounds like thunder,” Citron’s expression started to brighten. 

“Don’t just stand there, everyone! Hurry along, it’s time for the curtain call!” Ran reminded everyone, giving them each a light push on the back. 

“Ye-Yes! Let’s go, everyone!” Sakuya led everyone back out on stage to thank the guests.

_ “Thank you for your hard work, everyone.” _

****

Everything went by in a flash, and soon, they were two days away from their final performance. Due to the fact that Sakuya and Masumi were still high schoolers, they could only perform at night during the weekdays. Afterwards, they would hold meetings until it was late.

It was no wonder that she found them asleep in the dressing room. She set down the handmade snacks she had brought over on the table. 

_ “The sales have been going well due to the promotion that the first generation Spring Troupe provided. I’m glad they came to watch and helped us. We should be sold out, actually—“ _

Matsukawa slammed the door open and shouted, “Big news, Director!!!” 

Ran jumped, muffling a scream that nearly came out of her. 

“Wuahhhh! Wha- what is it?!” Sakuya shouted in return. 

“What? Is it morning already?” Tsuzuru lifted his head up and tried to rub the sleep out of his eyes. 

“—?!” Citron jolted up. 

“Mm..?” Itaru woke up considerably slower than everyone. 

Masumi managed to stay asleep.

“Fifififififi—,” Matsukawa was stuttering like no tomorrow. 

“Okay, let me guess; the tickets for the final performance sold out?” 

Matsukawa stared at her like she grew another head before nodding his head violently.

“The last ticket was just sold!” Matsukawa declared as he turned the laptop around to show everyone the screen. 

“The tickets for the final performance are sold out..,” Sakuya repeated. 

“That means the theatre won’t disappear, right?” Tsuzuru asked for reconfirmation. 

Ran grinned, “Yeah, and it’s all because of you guys.”

Everyone started to celebrate, and Ran couldn’t help but watch them lovingly.

“Director, you’re so calm,” Citron commented. “It’s like you knew this was going to happen!”

“I didn’t know what would happen,” Ran shook her head. “It’s just that I believed everyone could do it. Now, let’s get through the rest of the performances without regrets!” 

****

Ran had stepped out of the bathroom and went over to the lounge/kitchen to get something. Before she stepped into the room, she could hear Citron and Itaru talking. 

“Your leg is hurting, right?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You can’t play dump.”

“You mean play dumb, right.”

“I know you were trying to cover your foot in the practice room. Was it during the performance?”

“It’s just a little bit twisted. Don’t tell Director-san or the other guys.”

“...”

“If you didn’t want me to find out, you should’ve done it in your room, Itaru-san,” Ran decided it was a good time to enter the room. 

“?! Director-san?! Where did you come from?” Both Itaru and Citron were startled by her sudden appearance. 

“I just finished taking my bath,” Ran responded as she went over to the kitchen and pulled out a frozen water bottle from the freezer, which she wrapped with a clean kitchen towel. “I left some medical supplies in the practice room, I’ll go grab them, so just sit tight.” 

She handed the bottle to Itaru, “Put this on your ankle, it’ll help.”

“Thank you,” Itaru accepted the item. 

Ran left and came back with a first aid kit filled with medical supplies. She kneeled down in front of Itaru and pulled out the compression bandage from the first aid kit. 

“Give me your ankle,” Ran held out her hand. 

“...,” Itaru did as he was told, removing the ice from his ankle. Citron watched as Ran examined Itaru’s sprain before wrapping it with ease. 

“This should be fine. It should make it easier to walk, but anything too strenuous will still hurt. As much as I’d like you to rest, we don’t have time for that. I know you don’t want anyone else to know, so I won’t tell, but only if you promise that you’ll ice it properly and tell me if it hurts too much.”

“I understand, Director-san,” Itaru agreed as Ran let go of his foot. 

She got up from the floor and put the first aid kit back in the kitchen. 

“Director-san, I’ve been thinking this for a while, but it feels like you know everything,” Itaru carefully got up from the couch. 

“I don’t,” Ran responded swiftly. “I just believe in you.”

****

It was the day of the final performance, which was miraculously sold out like it had been in the game. 

“Tonight, I’d like to do your makeup,” Ran announced as the boys were getting ready for the performance. 

“Eh?” The guys looked at her strangely. “Aren’t you busy?”

“It’s fine,” Ran approached Sakuya-kun first. “We don’t have much time though, so come on.” 

The Spring Troupe listened to their director, allowing her to fix up their makeup. Ran wasn’t talented at makeup, but as she wore it more regularly, she was used to doing it. 

****

Just before the show started, Sakyo came to meet them backstage. 

“Why did you come?” Masumi demanded as soon as he saw the older man. If he had been a cat, his fur would’ve risen on his back. 

“I came to watch as promised,” Sakyo responded gruffly. 

“Thank you,” Ran smiled. Unlike the actors, she had no negative feelings for the yakuza member/debt collector. “The theatre is packed, as promised.” 

“Yeah, it appears that you managed to pass the first condition.” 

“Yes, which has lessened the load just a little. There’s still a lot to do.”

“That’s right. It’s meaningless if you can’t satisfy the audience. You need to gain fans to be able to improve the theatre’s finances, and for that reason—.”

Ran started to listen to Sakyo’s lecturing, all while hearing the murmurs of her actors. 

“In order to make profits you have to…” 

Ran’s smile grew wider, and soon, she couldn’t resist. “Haha..”

“What’s so funny? Pay attention to when someone’s talking to you.”

“I just thought that you were a really nice person; you keep looking after us.” 

“....Hmph, let’s go, Sakoda.” 

“Yes sir!” 

Sakyo stopped and turned his head to look at Ran, “Today’s theatre reminds me of the past.” 

“It’ll surpass what happened in the past soon.”

Sakyo’s eyes widened a fraction. 

“We’ll begin in five minutes!” A staff member’s voice broke the atmosphere that had developed between Ran and Sakyo. 

****

The performance was going smoothly, with everyone being motivated until the end. Ran monitored them from backstage, and frowned when she saw Itaru starting to struggle. She clenched her fist, as expected, even with wrapping his ankle, it still hurt to use it as much as he needed to. Just as the part where Tybalt was supposed to collapse, pain shot through Itaru’s expression, and he reflexively covered his foot. 

The other actors lost their concentration. Ran eyed the staff member,  _ “If Sakuya-kun doesn’t cover for him, I’ll have to—.”  _

“Stop, Tybalt! The fight is over!” 

_ “Safe!!!”  _ Ran released the breath she was holding. 

“Put down your sword!” 

Itaru scowled,  “ — Die, Romeo!” 

“ — Ugh…” 

“What should we do?” The staff member whispered.

“It’s alright, they’ve covered it fine, let’s continue as it is.” 

Ran continued to watch over them with a gentle smile. They were shining brightly on stage, and in her opinion, they were far better than the actors that they had watched the other day. Though those actors were far more talented and had a lot more experience, the way the Spring Troupe members bloomed on stage could only be called refreshing, just like the season of rebirth. 

The curtain fell after Masumi spoke his last line, and they left the stage as the curtain fell. 

The applause was deafening. 

“...Amazing...It’s the biggest applause that we’ve received so far!” Sakuya whispered. 

“It’s a standing ovation,” Tsuzuru was surprised. 

“I was nervous while thinking about what we should do!” Citron looked over at Itaru, who had started to cry. 

Ran panicked, “Does it hurt, Itaru-san?!” 

Itaru stared down at his hand. 

“Huh, Itaru-san?! Does it hurt that much?!” 

“An ambulance.” 

“No— ,” Itaru finally found his words. 

“No?” Sakuya repeated in a questioning tone. 

“It’s just...I feel more passionate than I’ve ever been in my whole life,” Itaru explained. “I’m just laughing..” The smile that appeared on his face was far more precious than any treasure or gemstone. 

“You’re like Citron-san!” 

“I don’t confuse crying and laughing! I’m downset!” Citron exclaimed, pretending to be offended. 

“You’re wrong, it’s upset,” Masumi corrected.

“Pfft, hahaha,” Ran couldn’t resist the urge to laugh. “Now, it’s time for the curtain call! Hurry along, the audience is awaiting you!” 

****

As the audience started leaving, the few that came to help the troupe came to see the actors. Everyone gave their praises in their own unique manner, and it made Ran’s heart fill with pride and joy. 

She also spoke with the two individuals she needed to recruit for the Summer Troupe. 

She had everyone return to the dorm first so they could shower get some rest before dinner. 

Melancholy and relief bloomed in her heart as she stared up at the set. With this, the first performance was over. They were one step closer to a lively dorm and days filled with happiness. 

_ “If this is a dream...please don’t let it end here.” _

Ran could only pray. 

“Why are you making an expression like you got the job done?” A voice came from behind her. It was Sakyo. 

“You haven’t gone home yet, Furuichi-san?” 

“The lights were still on, so I came to check if there was a suspicious person.”

Ran smiled softly. 

“I know I’m not done,” Ran returned to looking up at the stage. “I still have three performances and fifteen members to recruit. There’s a lot to do.”

“That’s right. You need to go all out at this pace as much as possible.” 

“Really, Furuichi-san really cares for this theatre. It also seems like you have some history with it.”

“...I wonder.” 

_ “Well, I know already.” _

“So, have you decided on how you’re going to get members for the Summer Troupe?” Sakyo continued on with his practical interrogation. 

“The flyers had a recruitment notice, and I’m planning on holding an audition. There’s a few people that I want to scout too.” 

“...Is that so?” 

“Yes. Please look forward to the next performance as well, Furuichi-san.” 

****

Ran finished cooking just as the Spring Troupe members finished whatever they were doing— may it have been a shower or just resting. She made sure to prepare everyone’s favorite foods along with some more. 

“Whoa! That’s a lot of food!” Sakuya jumped when he witnessed the dining table. 

“Director?! When did you manage to make all of this?!” Tsuzuru’s eyes almost bulged out of their eye sockets

“I wanted to host a little party to celebrate the success of the Spring Troupe's debut performance,” Ran came out of the kitchen with the various drinks she prepared, and handed everyone a glass. “So make sure to eat up and relax, you’ve all worked hard.”

“Good work!” Everyone announced to each other. 

Matsukawa sniffled before completely breaking down, “...I’m so glad that the theatre is staying around..!” 

“It’s too early to cry, Manager!” Tsuzuru handed the older man a few tissues. 

Ran looked at Sakuya, “Since everyone has their drinks, Sakuya, please lead the toast, as our one and only leader.”

“Eh?!” Sakuya was surprised by the sudden development. 

“Go for it, leader!” Tsuzuru cheered. 

“I’ve never started a toast before… Wouldn’t it be better if the Director did it instead?” 

With a small smile, Masumi urged, “Hurry up with it, Sakuya.”

“We’re waiting,” Itaru hummed. 

“Just relapse!” Citron came in, with his usual mispronunciation. 

“...Relax, right. Okay— It’s crazy...not too long ago, I was the only one here, and I was satisfied with just being able to stand on stage at all. Yet, not too long after, I found out that the theatre might go under and then I met the Director and everyone else. Then, I started to realize that I could do better, that I wanted to do better. It wasn’t just for myself, but for everyone else.

“Closing night was one of the happiest moments of my life. I can’t believe how fast it went by; I wish I could live it all over again— that’s how precious it is to me.”

Itaru and Tsuzuru provided him with their affirmation. 

“I’ve still got a long way to go, but I look forward to working with everyone! Let’s put out an even better performance next time!” 

Masumi and Citron agreed. 

“Then...cheers!” 

Everyone raised their cups and cheered. Or, almost everyone.

“Masumi-kun, you downed that fast!” Ran chuckled.

Matsukawa started to weep all over again, and this time Ran provided him with the tissues. 

The celebration was filled with laughter. 


	10. Episode One- Chapter Ten

The Spring Troupe was curious about what was going to happen next, and so Ran explained everything concerning the other troupes and how many more members she needed to gather. Everyone was a little disappointed in the fact that they probably wouldn’t be able to perform again until the next year, though Itaru seemed happy with the development since he could play his games. 

“It doesn’t have to be as frequent as it was before, but I do expect you guys to practice. I think at least three times a week should be good, but if you want to improve faster, everyday would be best. Since we have the audience surveys, we should look through them to see what we need to tweak for next time.”

“Oh, that reminds me. There's this one closing night survey that was packed with writing, front to back. Between the positives and negatives, it was ten pages all together.”

_ “Oh, that must’ve been Sakyo-san’s, now that I think about it.”  _

“They must be very detailed orientated,” Ran chuckled. 

“Was it Yuzo-san?” Itaru guessed. 

“They didn’t leave a name, actually,” Tsuzuru shook his head. 

“That just shows how much they paid attention to us, right?” Sakuya pointed out. 

“That is the most gratifying!” Citron smiled. 

“Yeah, which means we should live up to their expectations. For the other performances, I would like to have your support. Yours went well, but it’s only the first step. We still have to get through three more performances.”

Everyone agreed to Ran’s request. She also made Tsuzuru the scriptwriter for the Summer Troupe’s play, and answered the question of how she was going to recruit the new members. 

It was a delightful night. 

When everything was over, the boys helped with the clean up, despite being exhausted. Well, Ran was grateful, since it would’ve taken a long time to clean up if it was just herself. She made sure to send them off on their merry way immediately after everything was done, watching them head into their rooms before going to her own. 

****

Ran read the blog before she started getting to work on her side business. She checked the soaps and wrote everything down in her inventory before she started to pack the orders she had received. She planned on closing the shop for a few days so she could provide her complete attention to the Summer Troupe, meaning she has to pack all of the orders and send them off before then. 

****

The next morning, Ran decided to make a light breakfast for everyone. It was slightly later than usual, as she had decided to cancel morning practice so the boys could get as much sleep as possible. The Summer Troupe auditions were for the next weekend, so she had some time before starting the next performance cycle. 

“Director-san, are you going out?” Itaru asked as he saw the hefty bags Ran was carrying to the entrance. 

“Huh?” Ran looked back at Itaru. “Oh, Itaru-san. I’m just making a trip to the post office; I already made breakfast for everyone, if you’re hungry.” 

She thought Itaru would’ve taken the chance to game or sleep. 

“Should I drive you over there? Those bags look really heavy, I don’t think you should walk with those. What if you strain your body?” 

“You don’t have to; I’m sure you’re exhausted from these past few days,” Ran declined as politely as she could. 

“You say that like you aren’t yourself. I’m already awake anyways, I’ll drive you, Director-san. Just give me a second to grab my keys.” 

Itaru didn’t seem to be taking no for an answer. Ran sighed, but decided to wait for the Spring Troupe member who was surprisingly persistent. 

“By the way…,” Itaru looked over at Ran after he parked in the post office’s parking lot. “What’s in the bags?”

“Aah,” Ran evaded Itaru’s gaze. “My friend owns a business and I help her out with packing the online orders.”

“Oh..”

“You can wait here, Itaru-san, it shouldn’t take too long,” Ran got out of the car, grabbing the two duffel bags from the backseat before running off to the post office. 

There wasn’t really a reason she needed to hide what she was doing, but she just didn’t want them to know. All she wanted was to make their lives a little bit easier.

_ “I want to pay their wages using my soap business’s profits, but if I overdo it, they’ll probably get suspicious, especially when Sakyo-san comes. Maybe I should keep managing the accounting…but Sakyo would definitely get suspicious if I refuse his offer to manage it…Maybe I should just give in and tell the boys when the time comes…”  _

She continued to contemplate her options as Itaru drove them back to the dorm. 

****

“Director-san’s been deep in thought recently,” Itaru commented as the boys finished up the evening rehearsal. Ran wasn’t supervising them as she had gone out to get some business done.

“Yeah, she’s made curry for the third time in a row, and she looked quite flustered when I pointed it out,” Tsuzuru agreed. “It’s amazing really, to cook curry every single day without even noticing.” 

“I wonder what’s gotten to her… Maybe she’s worried about something,” Sakuya frowned. 

“Maybe it’s a delayed reaction?” Citron suggested. 

“Huh?” 

“Director-san was pretty calm and confident during the time before our performances, even when we hit a few bumps. Citron could be talking about how her worries finally floated up now that everything’s over.” 

“Yes!” 

“...She muttered something about money earlier.”

Everyone looked at Masumi. 

“Ah...that’s right...We’re going to be getting more members, which means more expenses to cover. We’re in debt, so having to use money for anything is probably stressful for the Director,” Tsuzuru nodded his head. “It’s easy to forget, since she always makes sure our needs are met.”

“Well, it’s hard to believe we’re in debt when she provides us so much food every meal and makes sure to buy nice products for us to use. She’s definitely spending more money than what she needs to so that we’re comfortable,” Itaru pulled out his phone to start playing his game. “She also gave us a cut of the profits. Debt is hard to escape.” 

“...Speaking of the Director, she smells really sweet,” Sakuya changed the topic after the atmosphere got a little dark. Masumi glared at him. 

“You’re too close to her,” Masumi grumbled. 

“I-it’s not like that!” 

“Ah, I get what you mean. She has the same scent as fragrance stores do; like she owns a lot of candles or perfumes,” Itaru stated. “It might be her hobby, I know some female coworkers who like to collect candles. Either way, it’s probably not a good idea to pry too much, since we need to respect her privacy.”

Everyone agreed by nodding their heads.

****

Ran spent the week before the arrival of the Summer Troupe to make some arrangements. Even when the boys asked Matsukawa what she was doing, he could only shake his head. She had been keeping everything a secret. 

In reality, she had received quite a few more orders than she anticipated since she had made an announcement on her store’s social media that she would be closed for some time due to personal matters. 

“Oh, boys, could you give me your bedsheets and pillow cases tomorrow morning? I want to wash them,” Ran requested as everyone was heading back to their rooms after dinner. “If you have anything else to wash, I can also get that done. Just make sure to put a note on which hamper is yours. Oh, and if you need to have any repairs done on your clothing, I can do that as well.”

“What’s this all of a sudden, Director?” Tsuzuru asked. 

“Huh?” Ran stopped washing the dishes to look at him.

“Ah, no, I’m grateful that you’re going to do that for us, I was just curious if something happened for you to..” 

“Oh..,” Ran blinked. “I’m just feeling a little antsy, so I just need something to keep me occupied.” 

“Are you okay?” Sakuya furrowed his eyebrows. 

“Yeah,” Ran reassured. “I’m fine.” she looked away. 

_ “I’m getting annoyed with the questions.” _

“I got it. Thank you, Director-san,” Itaru seemed to realize what was going on. “Come on guys, we all have an early morning tomorrow.” 

Ran sighed in relief. 

_ “I’m glad that Itaru knows when to stop everyone,” _ Ran didn’t want to explain that her mood was being ruined due to hormones. She resumed washing the dishes, speeding up the pace so she could go take a shower before heading up to her room to rest as much as she could. 

****

“Today’s finally the day,” Sakuya said as everyone was walking over to the theatre. Today was the day of the Summer Troupe auditions. 


	11. Episode Two- Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while, and I apologize. There's been quite a few things I've been needing to do, so I haven't written much fanfiction. I'm also working on an original work, and so I needed to prioritize that for a moment. I'll try to post as soon as I can.

Ran took a deep breath, calming her frazzled nerves.

“I wonder if anyone will show up for the audition..,” Matsukawa muttered as he idly stood beside Ran. 

Though Ran had an idea of what happened before, she asked anyway, “How was it like before?”

“It was just me,” Sakuya replied. 

“The literal definition of man-to-man,” Matsukawa responded with a genuine smile. 

“He said, ‘You’re hired,’ on the spot. No questions asked.”

“...Please have some standards! You're really lucky it was Sakuya-kun.”

Just as Ran finished her statement, the doors opened to reveal the ever so friendly Kazunari and the straight faced Yuki.

“Heya!” Kazunari greeted everyone with his brilliant smile and cheery tone. 

“Hi,” Yuki said rather curtly. 

“Welcome!” Ran’s mood brightened up immediately. “I’m glad the two of you came!” 

“Kazunari-kun and Yuki-kun?!” Sakuya was surprised to see the two of them in the auditorium. 

Tsuzuru looked over to Ran, “Are these the two you scouted?”

“Yes; I thought they had potential as actors,” Ran nodded her head. 

_ “I can’t wait to spend time with the Summer Troupe!!” _

As everyone was catching up with one another and discussing the matter of joining the troupe, Muku arrived at the scene. Ran noticed him as he came in, but she decided to let him make his entrance. 

“Excuse me!” Muku’s loud voice startled everyone, effectively catching their attention. He became a little flustered, “I-I’m sorry! I tried to get your attention a few times but..”

“...Eh?” Yuki’s eyebrows furrowed when he saw Muku. 

“Could it be that you’re here to audition for the Summer Troupe?” Ran asked in a gentle manner, in hopes to help Muku relax. 

“Ye-yes...Please take care of me,” Muku muttered shyly. 

Ran watched over the two middle schoolers converse, waiting for them to finish until she decided to continue on with the audition. 

_ “Mm..it should be about time for Tenma-kun to come…” _

Just as she thought that, a familiar puff of orange hair came into the auditorium through the doors. 

“...Oi, is here the venue for the audition?” 

“ _ Bingo.” _

****

The audition went over as smoothly as well...as smoothly as it did in the game. It ended up being more stressful than Ran anticipated, seeing her beloved actors bickering and having to say some harsh words to Tenma, but she managed to stay calm and explain everything as well as she could manage. 

She made sure to keep a smile on her face.

“Alright, let’s start practice next Saturday, on the day everyone moves into the dorm,” Ran concluded the audition with that. 

_ “Ah...they’ll have another argument over dorm rooms, won’t they? Should I just check on Misumi-kun before then? He should be there, right? But maybe it would be better to…” _

“Director?” Sakuya broke Ran’s train of thought. “Are you okay?” 

“A-ah, yeah,” Ran responded sheepishly. “Sorry, I was just thinking about something. Why don’t we return to the dorms then?” 

_ “...I’ll wait to meet Misumi-kun. It would be better that way, and the plot will stay on track.” _

****

“Woah, Director-san, that’s quite a lot of bread,” Itaru came home on Friday night to find Ran in the kitchen, and the dining table full of bread that was cooling off. “It’s like you’re opening a bakery.”

“Ah, welcome home, Itaru-san,” Ran greeted the office man. “I just wanted to prepare something that would last a few days just in case I don’t have time to cook. I ended up making a lot, since I’m not sure how much the new members will eat.”

At the moment, she was in the middle of making some gyoza that she could freeze for later. She also made some pasta sauce earlier in the day, which had been chilled before being placed in the freezer. 

“Haha, there’s a lot of food, even if it’s meant for eleven people. Do you want any help?” 

“No, I should be good. Itaru-san just got out of work, so you should relax a little. After I’m done making these gyoza, I’ll finish up dinner.”

Ran made baked gnocchi with broccoli, along with some Mediterranean pasta salad. They didn’t require much time, which made it nice for her. 

The bread was magically stacked somewhere in the kitchen after it cooled down, freeing up the dining table for dinner. 

“Tomorrow, I want to help make dinner!” Citron announced as he and Tsuzuru finished washing the dishes for the evening. “To celebrate the new members!” 

“Alright, I’ll be counting on you,” Ran agreed half heartedly, knowing there wasn’t any harm in it. “Then, make sure to get some rest everyone.”

“You can’t forget to rest yourself, Director,” Sakuya reminded the only lady in the dorm. Ran’s chest clenched as she saw the worried expression and small pout on his face. 

_ “Ah, he’s so cute. This is bad for my heart.” _

“I will,” Ran reassured as calmly as she could. 

****

As the Summer Troupe members shuffled into the dorm, Ran couldn’t help but beam at the thought of the family finally expanding. There was definitely going to be more work, but she didn’t mind. Just  _ seeing _ them made her happy— a little trouble on the way wasn’t going to destroy that. Kazunari posted a photo of the dorm on Instablam, as expected of him. 

Just as Ran mentioned assigning rooms, the bickering between Tenma and Yuki grew more heated. Kazunari and Muku decided to room together in Room 202 rather quickly, just as it did in the original game. Tenma insisted on having a room to himself, saying he would take Room 203. 

“Room 203, hmm…,” Matsukawa's sudden appearance startled the living daylights out of Ran. 

“Manager?! You scared me!” Ran placed a hand against her racing heart. 

“I’m sorry,” Matsukawa apologized. “But more importantly, I’m not sure if I’d recommend using Room 203...it’s pretty bad news.”

“What do you mean?” Ran feigned innocence. 

“Actually, there’s actually seven mysteries in the MANKAI Theatre…” 

“Is there one about Room 203?” 

“It’s said that sometimes, you can hear a mysterious voice coming from the room despite it being supposedly empty… I haven’t cleaned the room because I’ve been too scared to go there…”

“Manager, you really need to tell us these things sooner!” Ran sighed in defeat. She knew who was behind the mysterious voice and she wasn’t upset by that part, but the fact that Matsukawa was slacking off. If she didn’t know what was going to happen next, she definitely would’ve panicked and called the police in case there was a trespasser. In reality, that’s what Izumi should’ve done in the first place, but alas, this is a story and Misumi was made to be a good, lovable character. 

“I just got over my hangover,” Matsukawa mumbled as he rubbed the back of his head. 

“So that’s why you look so wasted,” the manager finally became a victim of Yuki's blunt interjections. 

“Oi, switch rooms with me, Rurikawa..,” Tenma grunted. 

“Hah? Don’t tell me that you’re actually scared?”

“I’m not!” Tenma defended himself.

_ “He isn’t fooling anyone..”  _ Ran kept a smile plastered on her face. 

“You’re the one who wanted to use Room 203, just so you know,” Yuki reminded the future Summer Troupe leader. 

“I changed my mind.” 

Ran waited a few more minutes before finally joining the conversation again, “Let’s go to Room 203 and check it out. There’s a chance that there’s nothing there.”

_ “That’s a lie, though.” _

The group went up to the second floor, to the mysterious Room 203. Though Ran just wanted to open the door and finish this whole event, she waited for the others to act first. 

“Did you hear anything?” Ran asked as she looked over at everyone. 

“Nope,” Yuki shook his head. 

“...angle,” A muffled voice came from the other side of the door, and Ran’s heart started to race, for a different reason than the others, probably. Tenma shushed everyone, which caused some confusion, but then the voice came back, “....aaaaangle.”

“I heard it!” Tenma hissed.

“Me too!” Muku nodded his head. 

“There’s totes something shady in that room! I should take a picture and post it on Instablam!” Kazunari pulled out his phone and opened the camera app. 

“Ahh! Don’t do that!! What if something pops out in the picture!” Tenma hissed once again. 

“You’re really freaked out,” Yuki frowned, clearly irritated. 

“There’s a chance that it isn’t a ghost,” Ran pointed out. 

“Could it be a suspicious person?” Yuki questioned as he glanced back at the door. 

“Both are scary…,” Matsukawa cowered. 

“Shall we open it?” Ran tried to hide her excitement, since it wasn’t supposed to be an exciting scene.

  
“Eeh!? B..but we clearly heard something from inside!” Matsukawa became more frazzled. 

“That’s more the reason to open the door to check it out.” 

“But it’s dangerous, you know! What if it’s really a suspicious person—.” 

“We’ll be fine, since we’re all here.” 

“Wouldn’t it be better if there’s a man to accompany you?” Yuki suggested. 

“A man…,” Ran blinked. 

_ “You know, Matsukawa-san is technically the oldest man here…and isn’t that dependable in these types of situations…” _

“Oh..I got it! I’ve thought of something, please wait,” Matsukawa said before he walked off. 

_ “Ah…he’s going to grab Masumi-kun, isn’t he?”  _

“Thank you for waiting; I’ve brought the Director’s twenty-four hour security— Masumi-kun.”

Ran coughed. 

“...What?” Masumi was clearly a little confused with this development. “What are you doing?” His attention was completely directed towards Ran.

She explained the situation to him, “We just heard some strange noises coming from this room, so I wanted to check what’s going on inside.” 

Masumi moved to stand in front of the door, “...I’ll open it, stay behind me.” Ran did as he requested, taking a step back so he had some more space. 

“Be careful,” Ran whispered, though she was well aware that there was nothing to worry about. Masumi nodded his head before twisting the door knob and pushing the door open. 


End file.
